§ Rev. Ian Paisleyasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many Northern Ireland farmers have gone out of business since the United Kingdom joined the Common Market.
§ Mr. PendryIt is not possible to give a precise figure for the number of farmers "going out of business" over any given time period. The overall decline in farm business numbers can, however, be estimated from agricultural census statistics.
In the five year period 1973 to 1978, since the United Kingdom entered the European Economic Community, the number of significant farm businesses in Northern Ireland fell by about 3,500, a decline of just under 10 per cent. This was mainly due to the amalgamation of existing farms and the area of land in agricultural use has remained largely unchanged.