§ Mr. Hughesasked the Minister of Agriculture whether assistance is to be given to hill farmers and other marginal producers in England and Wales, similar to that recently announced by the Secretary of State for Scotland, in respect of marginal production in Scotland?
§ Mr. T. WilliamsYes, Sir. Arrangements have now been made to afford to farmers in England and Wales assistance similar in character to that announced on 17th November for Scottish producers by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State in reply to the hon. Member for Kinross and West Perth. I append a statement giving details of the measures proposed.
Following is the statement
Consideration has been given to the difficulties confronting hill farmers in England and Wales and the Government has decided that further measures are necessary in order to enable hill lands to make a more effective contribution to food production and to preserve foundation stocks of cattle and sheep. Somewhat similar proposals for Scotland were announced by the Secretary of State for Scotland on 17th November. At this stage in the war it has become essential to look to the less favourably placed lands of the marginal type, which are common in hill districts, for part of the further expansion of output that is required of home agriculture.
Hill sheep farmers have already been given a subsidy for breeding ewes. As my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland has just announced, this subsidy will be paid for a further year at the rate of 8s. per eligible ewe in the flock on 4th December, 1942. The conditions of eligibility will generally follow those in force during the past year. In special circumstances applications for payment on the number of ewes in the flock on 4th December, 1940, will be considered. Flocks producing cross-bred or half-bred lambs and maintained by purchase of ewes, shearlings or ewe lambs of mountain breeds, have in the past year generally 1793W failed to qualify for the subsidy. The lambs secure a higher price than the small lambs derived from pure Mountain breeds of sheep, but it is recognised that many of these producers are in need of assistance and it is proposed that in the coming year eligible applicants should receive a subsidy at half the standard rate.
In order to encourage the improvement of hill grazings in England and Wales and the provision of summer pasturage for young cattle from lowland dairy and other farms, a grant of £3 per head will be payable to the owner of the cattle in respect of all home-bred cattle kept on hill grazings for at least six months in the year. The cattle may be cows, heifers or steers but must be of a hardy type. Bulls and calves will not be eligible. The farm must be not less than 50 acres in extent and at least 50 per cent. of the area must consist of rough hill pastures, taking into account grazing rights. Agisted cattle will be eligible, in the expectation that lowland farmers will thereby be encouraged to place on the hills replacement stock, including in-calf heifers. Applicants will have to satisfy their County War Agricultural Executive Committee that the hill grazings are likely to be improved and they must be prepared to undertake any necessary measures of improvement, such as surface draining, bracken cutting, or re-seeding. It is considered that this grant will enable the hill farmer to increase materially the productive capacity of hill land and at the same time will secure an expansion of home breeding of cattle.
These grants for hill sheep and upland cattle should enable most of the marginal farmers in the upland and hill districts to make their contribution to increased home food production. For those marginal farmers in other districts, who produce arable crops, the acreage payments for wheat, rye and potatoes will provide some degree of security against the danger of low yields due to bad weather or other causes. In the main, therefore, those various payments will meet the difficulties of marginal farmers at the present time. It is recognised that there may be exceptional cases where the County War Agricultural Executive Committee will desire to direct an occupier to carry out some agricultural operation that is dictated by the requirements of the food production campaign but which the occupier could not carry out from his own unaided resources 1794W without making his farming enterprise as a whole on the farm in question uneconomic. If a case for assistance is established it will be given in the form of a remission of part of the cost of such goods or services as the Committee may consider it necessary to supply to the farmer to assist him to perform the operation in question.