§ Mr. LidingtonTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on the impact on British agriculture of decoupling carried out(a) on an historic basis and (b) on the basis of regional averages. [132661]
§ Margaret BeckettWe are currently consulting stakeholders on whether the historic or area model of the new Single Payments Scheme should be operated in England. Responses to that exercise will help develop our understanding of the range of environmental, social and economic impacts of each of the models including the impact on the agriculture industry and its constituent parts. An assessment has been made of the impact of each model on the distribution of CAP direct aid payments. A copy has been placed in the Library of the House.