§ Mr. Scott-Hopkinsasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what alternative arrangement he proposes for the payment of Hill Cow Subsidy on Bodmin Moors, in view of the difficulties recently encountered.
§ Mr. HareThe payment of Hill Cow Subsidy on common land is restricted to a maximum stocking of 1 cow to 8 acres. Where stocking exceeds this rate, as has happened on the Bodmin East and West Moors, appropriate deductions have been made in subsidy payments, by a flat percentage cut. This has created anomalies and difficulties and in future, where a Bodmin common is declared to be overstocked for Hill Cow Subsidy purposes, we are proposing, in the interests of good husbandry, to relate the numbers on which subsidy will be paid to the carrying capacity of the enclosed land claiming grazing rights on the Moor. On the basis of our present information about stocking, the new arrangements would apply this year to the Bodmin East and West Moors, including Davidstowe.