§ Mr. Jim CunninghamTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many fishing vessel decommissions his Department funded during the year 1994–95; what was the average funding per vessel; what is the average cost of decommissioning a vessel; and how many vessel owners applied to his Department for funding to decommission their vessels during the year 1994–95. [2653]
§ Mr. BaldryUnder the Fishing Vessels (Decommissioning) Scheme 1994, 471 applications were received, and 162 vessels were successfully decommissioned at a total cost of £8.8 million. The average cost per vessel was some £54,160. Owners submit bids taking account of the cost of the applicant of scrapping. Information on this cost is not available centrally.