asked the Secretary of State for Industry whether he will make a statement on his recent meeting with the chairman of the Co-operative Development Agency.

[pursuant to his reply, 19 December]: My right hon. Friend and I met Lord Oram, the chairman of the Co-operative Development Agency, on 26 November. We assured him that the Government were in favour of producer co-operatives. We expressed the hope that the Agency would demonstrate its effectiveness and succeed in its declared aim of becoming self-supporting as soon as possible.