§ 40. Mr. James Johnsonasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement regarding his future plans for the White Fish Authority.
§ 41. Mr. McNamaraasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will now make a statement on the future of the White Fish Authority.
§ 43. Mr. Ronald King Murrayasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement upon Government policy for the future administration of the fishing industry.
§ Mr. PriorIn considering the future of the White Fish Authority and the Herring Industry Board my right hon. Friends and I have had to take into account not only the position in this country but also what form of organisation will best serve our fishing and fish-using industries within the enlarged European Community.
The Community regulations foresee the establishment of a network of producers' organisations which, if fully achieved, would leave no separate regulatory rôle for independent national bodies like the board and the authority. On the other hand there are functions for which continuing provision may be needed.
Changes must therefore be expected after experience inside the Community has shown what we shall need, but to rewrite constitutions and powers would require main legislation and it would not be right to ask the House now to settle what the best long-term arrangements should be. Instead we propose that the authority and the board should continue under existing law for a period provisionally set at five years.
65WEconomies must, however, be made to concentrate expenditure on essentials, such as grants and loans for vessels and the collectively financed research and development conducted for industry. We have decided that it would be right to take steps to end the additional publicity levy introduced in 1970, thus limiting the authority's income from industry to the general levy and to charges for specific services.
We have also asked the authority, which already maintains an Edinburgh headquarters for its committee for Scotland and Northern Ireland, to consider urgently with the Herring Industry Board what Scottish location would best serve them all. Although formally separate identities would remain there must be as unified an administration as practicable and we shall consider how, under present powers, this could best be reflected in the membership of the bodies concerned.
The major uncertainties affecting the future of the authority and the board have now been removed. Of course, unified administration and concentration on essential functions must lead to changes; and we foresee further change after the early years of Community membership have shown what forms of domestic organisation and regulation are best. This may pose questions for the staff of the two bodies, whose interests will certainly not be overlooked. I am sure, however, that the industrial development programmes on which they are engaged will continue to call for their expertise.