§ Mr. Steenasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1) what is his policy regarding the manifestation of phylloxera in English vineyards;
(2) if he will abandon his policy of attempted eradication of phylloxera in English vineyards.
§ Mr. Donald Thompson[pursuant to his reply, 9 April 1987]: We have reviewed policy in relation to phylloxera. We have decided that we should not require the compulsory grubbing-up of infested vines. Where a vineyard is infested, we shall impose statutory restrictions which will not permit vines to be moved from the premises. In addition, access to infected areas of vineyards will he restricted, although care will be taken to allow tourist 482W access to continue to the greatest possible extent consistent with plant health safety. When vineyard owners do grub up vines from infested vineyards, the Ministry will monitor the operation and, if the pest is found, will require the land to he kept clear of vines for 12 months, after which replanting with certified resistant grafted rootstock will be permitted. These measures are designed to cause the minimum disruption of the normal activities of vineyards consistent with minimising the risk of spread of the disease. The plant health and seeds inspectorate will continue to monitor and inspect imports of vines. Phylloxera remains a notifiable disease.
The technical advice is that the best defence against phylloxera is the use of vines on resistant grafted rootstocks. Growers can protect themselves by using such vines when re-planting.