§ Paul FlynnTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what total sums of public money, unavailable to urban areas, were paid in each of the past four years to rural areas in all forms of subsidies, compensations, concessions and reduced charges. [54827]
§ Alun MichaelIt is difficult to draw an absolute line between urban and rural areas. Support for farmers will be available to farmers within a mainly urban area, for instance. It must also be remembered that these figures represent targeted funds. Other finances are targeted at purposes relating mainly or wholly to urban needs.
The following table provides information on the total public expenditure on UK agriculture in each of the past four years. 361W
£ million 1998–99 1999–00 2000–01 2001–02 UK Public expenditure under CAP & on national grants and subsidies 3,482 3,161 3,014 3,227 (b) Foot and Mouth disease costs [of direct benefit to the agriculture sector] — — 29 2,028 (c) Total 3,482 3,161 3,043 5,255 In addition UK agriculture benefits from red diesel and other concessions. These are broadly estimated to be worth £300m per year.
Beyond agriculture there are other forms of support for rural areas unavailable to urban areas. The following table provides details of public expenditure for relevant programmes for rural areas in England (as defined by the Countryside Agency definition).
programme £million 1998–99 1999–00 2000–01 2001–02 Rural Transport1 2.3 3.3 4.6 6.0 Community Services Grant2 — — — 1.7 Parish Transport2 — — — 0.4 1This includes the Rural Transport Partnership and Rural Transport Development Fund, which include funds for linking rural and urban areas. In 1999 the Countryside Agency took over the role of the Rural Development Commission, which administered these funds. 2Part of the Countryside Agency Vital Villages programme, which first reported in 2001–02. In addition there is rate relief for a number of rural businesses, including village shops, post offices, public houses and garages in rural communities of less than 3,000 inhabitants.
There are a number of other programmes that have specific rural targets but are also open to urban areas. These include Parish Plans, funded by the Countryside Agency, and programmes of the Regional Development Agency and Housing Corporation.