asked the Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries if he will consider holding an inquiry into the profits which meat factories have made this autumn.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Meat Factories' Profits.
76.
I am very concerned to ensure that the prices paid by meat factories for livestock are fair and reasonable and, as a result of discussions which I have had with the factories on this, they have agreed to pay minimum prices on a rising scale up to end of January next and to contribute to a voluntary fund for assisting farmers with young cattle to purchase feed at reduced prices for wintering them. I am keeping an open mind on the question of an inquiry into the meat factories' profits. That is an answer to the Deputy's question.
It is not, because we want a public inquiry into it, as I pointed out a few minutes ago. These people are making exorbitant profits. Is the Parliamentary Secretary aware that factories that are supplying over 90 per cent of their killings to intervention——
The Deputy is again proceeding to make a statement.
I am not. I am asking the Parliamentary Secretary if he is aware that over 90 per cent of the killings are going into intervention and they are not paying farmers intervention prices.
Surely the Minister is aware that this matter got full-scale publicity in a newspaper last week. It referred to a cow which sold in a mart for the price of a pint and finished up in a factory. I would like to know how many pints she got by the time she was processed?
She made 8p a lb.
I want to assure the Parliamentary Secretary I am not on my feet to annoy him but I want to bring the facts home to him. I want to let him know that I am aware—I am serious about this—that there is complete and absolute robbery and the farmers are being turned away from the gates of these places, let them be farmer-controlled or not. My opinion is that the more farmers control them the bigger gangsters and robbers they are.
Public inquiries are rarely approved in this country by any Government. If there is a case for an inquiry one way or the other I have no doubt the Minister would be only too pleased to hold it. Inquiries are not approved, and cannot be approved, by any responsible Minister or responsible Government unless those making the assertions or allegations help by giving them statements which will bear investigation.
Would the Parliamentary Secretary agree that it is queer that one gentleman should kill 60 or 70 cattle per day while six or seven or perhaps 20 farmers who have only one load of cattle will not be let in?
The Deputy is getting into an argument. Question No. 77.
Further arising out of the reply——
The Leas-Cheann Chomhairle has called the next question.
Question No. 77.