§ 19. Mr. Lofthouseasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food in how many cases proposals for rural diversification on agricultural land, over which his Department has been consulted, have been refused.
§ Mr. JoplingI regret that this information is not available. But it is, of course, Government policy to foster diversification in rural areas.
§ 57. Mr. Soamesasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he is in a position to announce his detailed plans for aiding rural diversification by giving help and encouragement to farmers to market more of their own produce.
§ Mr. JoplingI refer my hon. Friend to the reply my right hon. Friend the Minister of State gave to my hon. Friend the Member for the New Forest (Mr. McNair-Wilson) on 19 February. I propose to issue a consultation document in the next few weeks which will set out in greater detail our proposals for assisting rural diversification.