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Mr. Gummer : Estimates of United Kingdom and EC public private intervention stocks will be deposited in the Library of the House next week.

Irradiated Food

Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what discussions he has had in the Council of Ministers concerning the draft directive on the irradiation of foodstuffs ; and what is his position on the proposal to make the directive applicable to a narrow range of foodstuffs.

Mr. Maclean : The Internal Market Council has discussed this draft on two occasions. These meetings have confirmed that a majority of member states wish discussions to continue with a view to an agreed directive being introduced.

In publishing draft regulations on 6 August the Government have proposed limitation of the use of food irradiation to those products for which the process has been confirmed as acceptable from a public health standpoint by the EC scientific committee for food.

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