§ Mr. Nicholas WintertonTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what estimates his Department has made of the losses incurred by British farmers as a result of French and German import restrictions on British beef since 1 August. [98750]
§ Ms Quin[holding answer 22 November 1999]: It has not been possible to sell British beef in France or Germany since March 1996, and inevitably it will take time to build up sales when these countries lift their import restrictions. Any estimate of sales lost since 1 August would be entirely speculative.