§ 5. Mr. Buckasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what steps he is taking to implement the decision to allow loans to be made in appropriate cases to assist the acquisition by inshore fishermen of secondhand fishing boats.
Mr. VaneI would refer my hon. Friend to the reply given to my hon. Friend the Member for Aberdeen, South (Lady Tweedsmuir) on 15th February, 1962. I hope the necessary revision of the loan arrangements will not take too long.
§ Mr. BuckIn the Answer to which my hon. Friend has referred me, my hon. Friend said that it was hoped that arrangements for loans for secondhand vessels would be available "before long". How long is "before long" to be? Many months have passed since the Ministry decided that these loans should be made available to fishermen, and it is many months since the Fleck Committee reported and its recommendations were accepted. Is it not about time that the scheme was put into effect?
Mr. VaneI know that my hon. Friend is particularly interested in this subject, and I hope that it will not be long before the final rules are worked out. He must remember that when an arrangement like this has to be worked out among the Government Departments concerned, the Treasury and the industry, it is not as simple as it probably seems.