HC Deb 29 April 1993 vol 223 cc1140-2
11. Mr. John Marshall

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food when he plans to meet the new French Minister of Agriculture to discuss reforming the common agricultural policy.

Mr. Gummer

I met the new French Minister of Agriculture two weeks ago in London. The visit was his first to any European Community Minister.

Mr. Marshall

Did my right hon. Friend emphasise to the new French Minister that it would be an international tragedy if, due to a combination of narrow nationalism, short-term party advantage and chauvinism, he sought to derail the GATT talks by reneging on the reform of the common agricultural policy?

Mr. Gummer

I needed to use no such language, as the new French Agriculture Minister was very much aware of the need for a GATT agreement, not only for the interests of Great Britain and France but for the Community, the world and especially developing countries. He has his own problems and his own policies—he has fought an election, and a number of promises have been made, but I hope very much that we will come to an accommodation which protects this nation.

Mr. Llwyd

On the subject of reform of the CAP, local authorities in Wales are anxious to help farmers who do not have plans to accompany the integrated administration control system forms, but they have been told by representatives of Ordnance Survey that they would not be allowed to copy them, as that would be a breach of copyright. That fact has created a worse problem. We know that there is a time limit—15 May—and time is running out. I urge the Minister to have a word with Ordnance Survey to ask it to look at the matter sensibly.

Mr. Gummer

I have met the head of Ordnance Survey, who has made arrangements throughout England and Wales that have increased the number of outlets from 39 to 300. Unfortunately, very few farmers have tried to get their maps since October, when they were first warned that they had to do so. The Agricultural Development and Advisory Service is playing a particular part in Wales and I believe that the maps are available as widely as they need be. The one thing that we have made clear is that if farmers are genuinely unable to obtain the maps by 15 May, they can send them on afterwards and will not suffer penalties as a result.

Mr. Gill

When my right hon. Friend discusses reform of the CAP will he take a hard look at the system of beef intervention, because on 31 March Britain had more beef in intervention than we have had for a comparable period in each of the four previous years? A total of 164,000 tonnes of British beef were then in intervention. My right hon. Friend has often said that it is a great shame that British catering butchers cannot provide all the steaks that are required in this country. He will know that British beef in intervention stores is not available to them and in some cases, even if it were, it would not be in a suitable form. The issue is serious and I hope that when my right hon. Friend considers the reforms he will do something about the intervention beef, as action is long overdue.

Mr. Gummer

I have discussed intervention beef with the French Minister on two occasions. Intervention is an unsuitable way of regularly supporting the beef market, and should be an emergency provision, not the sort of regular activity that it now is. Catering butchers do not have that problem. Their problem in this country is that beef is not produced in the volume or in the way that provides them with the sort of portions that they want. I hope that the industry will address the issue, as there are many opportunities for it in the catering business.

Dr. Strang

As the common agricultural policy is responsible for food prices being higher than they need be, as it costs the average EC family of four £300 a year in higher taxes, and as the EC Commission has admitted that agricultural spending is set to rise sharply in the next two or three years, did the Minister tell his French counterpart that the CAP was like a juggernaut out of control and needed to be the subject of root and branch reform?

Mr. Gummer

We have carried out root and branch reform, but the effect of that is that we now pay money directly to farmers, instead of hiding it in the cost to the consumers, which will fall significantly. As a result, we can ensure that the money goes where it is needed. The cost to the CAP is the cost of Europe having a well looked-after landscape and of ensuring that we produce our own food—a price worth paying.