§ 25. Mr. Wingfield Digbyasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what is his policy with regard to the flooding of good agricultural land for reservoirs.
§ Mr. John MackieThe Government's policy is that good agricultural land should not be used for reservoirs if practicable alternatives are available without disproportionate cost.
§ Mr. DigbyIs the Parliamentary Secretary aware of the grave concern of Dorset farmers that a large area of excellent agricultural land is due to be flooded and of the rumours that other areas will follow, even in a rural county like Dorset?
§ Mr. MackieBeing a farmer, I naturally appreciate the concern of farmers about these areas, but consideration of the areas which the hon. Gentleman has mentioned is only in the preliminary stage and we will come into the picture later when the proposals are more advanced. We will certainly consider them very carefully indeed.
§ Mr. Godman IrvineIs the hon. Gentleman aware that a similar large area of agricultural land, possibly covering about 50 farms, is to be taken over in my constituency unless something is done about it fairly smartly? What is his policy about that?
§ Mr. MackieHon. Members must appreciate that, although agriculture has considerable importance to this country, we are a country of about 54 million people who require water for all sorts of purposes, and we have to make some arrangements for its supply. The Ministry looks carefully at all the proposals, and unless the cost of alternatives is disproportionate, we naturally fight those involving good agricultural land.