HC Deb 19 March 1981 vol 1 cc423-4
19. Mr. Beith

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether he has completed his inquiries into fish imports.

Mr. Buchanan-Smith

I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer I gave earlier to my hon. Friend the Member for Haltemprice (Mr. Wall).

Mr. Beith

Does the hon. Gentleman realise the anxiety that exists in the industry about imports? Cod, which used to fetch £35 a box two years ago, is appearing on the market for less than half that price. Does he realise that the scale of cod imports is something that the industry has never previously experienced?

Mr. Buchanan-Smith

The hon. Gentleman might be interested to learn that in January 1981 less cod was imported than in the previous year. I agree with him about the problem of prices. It is precisely for that reason that we have set up an investigation into imports and why we are examining the financial state of the industry. We hope shortly to come to a conclusion following our examination.

Mr. Kimball

Does my hon. Friend realise that the greatest contribution that he could make to the preservation of fish stocks would be to persuade the Northumberland river authority to abolish the 50 licences that it has issued for drift netting for salmon off the Northumberland coast?

Mr. Buchanan-Smith

I am sure that the hon. Member for Berwick-upon-Tweed (Mr. Beith) will have noted my hon. Friend's observation.