HC Deb 24 July 1989 vol 157 cc524-5W
Mr. Kirkwood

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement giving details of the operation of the cereals co-responsibility levy for the current year, including the total cost of administration of the scheme and the average length of time taken to make repayments of the levy.

Mr. Ryder

The cereals co-responsibility levy is collected from first buyers of grain, who are required to register with the intervention board for agriculture produce. The first buyers collect the levy from growers and submit it with their returns to the Home Grown Cereal Authority who act as the board's agents for this purpose. All registered first buyers are given full details of the operation of the scheme by the intervention board.

The total intervention board costs of collecting the levy in 1988–89, including £105,000 for the development of a computer system, were £430,000. Administration costs connected with the levy were also incurred by the four United Kingdom Agriculture Departments but these are not identifiable separately from other costs incurred in implementing policy in the cereals sector.

The necessary information is not collected to produce an average period for the time taken to make repayments of part of the additional levy in 1988–89. However, distribution of repayment claims started in mid-December 1988 and the deadline laid down in Community legislation for the repayments to be made is 31 July 1989.