§ Mr. Kinnockasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what is the present total tonnage of EEC surplus beef.
§ Mr. BishopStatistics of intervention stocks in EEC countries other than the United Kingdom are kept not by my Department but by the European Commission. According to the latest information received from the Commission, the total stocks of beef held by intervention agencies in mid-April were approximately 266,000 metric tons, of which United Kingdom stocks were 43 tons.
§ Mr. Kinnockasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1) how much of the EEC beef surplus is currently stored in Great Britain and where;
(2) at present wholesale beef prices, what is the monetary value of that part of the EEC beef surplus now stored in Great Britain;
(3) what proportion of that part of the EEC beef surplus currently stored in Great Britain was originally produced in Great Britain.
§ Mr. BishopSome quantities of beef owned by the intervention agency of the Republic of Ireland are at present in 421W cold store in Great Britain. The arrangements for this are made by the Irish intervention agency directly with the cold storage companies on a commercial basis. No records are kept by Her Majesty's Government of the quantity of beef involved nor its location. We are therefore not in a position to make an estimate of the value of this beef.
No other intervention beef is held in Great Britain.
No beef originally produced in Great Britain is currently being held in store under the EEC intervention arrangements, either in Great Britain or elsewhere.