HC Deb 19 January 1978 vol 942 cc649-52
7. Mr. Knox

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what plans he has to take agricultural land into public ownership.

24. Mr. Charles Morrison

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he intends to nationalise agricultural land.

25. Mr. Durant

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he has any intention of nationalising agricultural land.

Mr. Strang

As I told the hon. Member for Leominster (Mr. Temple-Morris) on 15th December 1977, my right hon. Friend the Minister has no proposals for the nationalisation of agricultural land.

Mr. Knox

Is the Parliamentary Secretary aware that the threat that land might be nationalised is very damaging to the confidence of farmers? Will he give an assurance that he would not remain a member of the Government if his party adopted the nationalisation of land in its election manifesto?

Mr. Strang

I suppose that the Government's success is such that the right hon. Lady the Leader of the Opposition and the hon. Gentleman are now being increasingly driven to the conclusion that the only shot left in their locker is to run the "Reds under the bed" scare. The hon. Gentleman knows perfectly well that the Government have no intention of nationalising agricultural land.

Mr. Morrison

Many farmers are still suffering from a loss of confidence and great consternation as a result of the alleged remarks of the Minister's colleague, the Under-Secretary of State for the Environment, that individual farmers could not be trusted to look after their own land. Will the Parliamentary Secretary ask the Minister, who is or, perhaps more hopefully, was a member of the Tribune Group, to ask the Tribune Group to pass a resolution against the nationalisation of land so as to restore confidence?

Mr. Strang

It is an abuse of agricultural Question Time to waste valuable minutes with that sort of rubbish. The hon. Gentleman is referring to a statement apparently alleged to have been made by my hon. Friend at a fringe meeting, which I attended, at a Labour Party conference. My right hon. Friend adressed himself to this matter last year.

Mr. Durant

Will the Minister give us an assurance now that this matter will be dropped for ever, not just for the next General Election? Secondly, will he encourage his hon. Friend to write another article in Tribune to make it clear that he does not support his first article in which he said that he was in favour of the nationalisation of land?

Mr. Strang

I shall give no such assurance. The hon. Gentleman is asking me to answer on behalf of the Government. These questions—certainly the hon. Gentleman's question—are addressed to the future policy of the Labour Party. Of course, there is a distinction between the objectives of the Labour Party—which I totally share—and the current policies of the Government.

Mr. Corbett

Will my hon. Friend firmly reject the unfortunate combination of empty heads and closed minds on the Opposition Benches and consider publishing an open discussion document for the industry and interested parties on the pros and cons of the State becoming landlord of agricultural land, so that we can separate investment in agricultural land from investment in agriculture, which causes many problems, especially when engaged in by the financial institutions?

Mr. Strang

Yes. Conservative Members should recognise that, in so far as the Labour Party has plans or has published proposals on this matter, they relate to the voluntary transfer of land in lieu of capital transfer tax. But my hon. Friend is right. There is concern about the increasing rôle of financial institutions, which have no direct interest in farming, buying up more and more land. It is precisely for that reason that my right hon. Friend has set up the Northfield Committee to look into this issue and how we can create more opportunities for bona fide aspiring young farmers to farm the land.

Mr. Jopling

Is the Parliamentary Secretary aware that we are grateful to have from his lips the knowledge that there is a difference over the possibility of the nationalisation of land between the Labour Party and the Government? The Under-Secretary of State for the Environment, whose words were quoted a few minutes ago, stated that in his view land nationalisation was the only solution because farmers could not be trusted to look after the long-term fertility of the land. In view of the disquiet which that has caused in the farming industry, will the Parliamentary Secretary give an undertaking that this is not the Government's policy?

Mr. Strang

It is absolute nonsense. I reject utterly the suggestion that a working farmer cannot be entrusted to look after the fertility of his land. The hon. Gentleman must be aware that, if a Labour Government were ever to implement radical proposals in this area, it would be on the basis of an election manifesto commitment.