§ Mr. SteinbergTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what is being done to revive the farming industry in the light of current levels of production.
§ Mr. MacGregorThe agriculture industry requires a. stable framework of policy against which to plan its business decisions. This was lacking while CAP spending was not subject to proper budgetary control and while exhaustion of CAP funds, notably on storage and disposal of surpluses, threatened the collapse of the system. The decisions reached on CAP reform at the recent European Council have averted that threat and provided a clearer framework within which farmers can now plan ahead.