§ 8. Mr. Langasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will consider the introduction of measures to stimulate the use of lime, especially in upland areas.
§ Mr. Buchanan-SmithThe application of lime qualifies for aid under the capital grant schemes when it is part of a grassland regeneration programme. Grants of up to 50 per cent. are available on hill land. We have no plans to introduce a further subsidy.
§ Mr. LangMay I assure my hon. Friend that the recent announcement by my right hon. Friend the Minister of increased hill livestock compensatory allowances has been favourably received in my constituency and elsewhere? Is he aware that the cumulative achievement of the Government in the hill and uplands sector is now most impressive? Will my hon. Friend give an assurance that he will continue to take every opportunity to restore long-term confidence to the sector?
§ Mr. Buchanan-SmithI thank my hon. Friend for his remarks. The action we have taken in that area this year and last underlines the importance we attach to the hill and upland areas as part of the production cycle in agriculture generally, but particularly in livestock.
§ Mr. John MacKayWill my hon. Friend accept that the farming industry welcomes the first-time grant, but is he aware that in areas, such as Argyll, with a fairly high rainfall the lime is quickly leached out of the soil? The general view among my farmers is that liming help would be among the most important actions the Government could take to assist farming in the upland areas.
§ Mr. Buchanan-SmithI have no doubt about the benefits of liming. Every farmer knows that if he limes he can reap the benefits of it. There is, therefore, a genuine incentive for farmers to apply lime. There are indications from surveys conducted so far this year that that fact has been increasingly realised by farmers.