§ Mr. Nicholas Wintertonasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what changes in the payment of subsidies will be made as a result of the proposed retiming of less favoured area allowances.
§ Mr. John Stradling Thomasasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how Welsh hill farmers will be affected by the retiming of payments of less favoured area allowances as a result of the cuts in public expenditure announced by the Chancellor of the Exchequer.
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§ Mr. StrangThe detailed arrangements for retiming the payments will be decided after consultation with farmers' representatives. The main effect will be to postpone some expenditure on compensatory allowances from the last part of the financial year 1977–78 into the early part of the next financial year, but farmers' total receipts from the allowances in 1978 will not be affected by this rephasing.
§ Mr. Blakerasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what was the original date for the payments of less favoured area allowances; and, as a result of the £2 million public expenditure cut in this area, what will be the new date.
§ Mr. StrangPayments of the less favoured area allowances are made in respect of a qualifying date of 1st January, payments being made after the applications have been scrutinised. The measures announced do not affect either the qualifying date or the overall entitlement to these allowances but will involve some rephasing of payments.