§ 41. Mr. ButlerTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he proposes to take any further steps to combat fraud in the common agricultural policy; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. GummerWe have taken the initiative in the Council of Ministers on many occasions to press for further action to deal with fraud in the common agricultural policy and valuable progress is being made. The Commission has recently presented to the Council proposals to require member states to carry out an annual physical check on intervention stocks and a minimum level of inspections of export refunds, and to tighten up the system of audit checks on firms making or receiving CAP payments. I will continue to press the Council to take speedy action on these proposals.
§ 43. Sir Hal MillerTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what is his latest estimate of the effect in the current year of the common agricultural policy reforms on intervention stores; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. GummerThe process of CAP reform has contributed to substantial reductions in intervention stock levels. The latest estimates of stocks held in public stores show that since the beginning of this year stocks of the major commodities have been reduced as follows:
Commodity Reduction in stocks ('000 tonnes) Reduction as a percentage of stocks at 31 December 1988 EC United Kingdom EC United Kingdom Per cent. Per cent. Beef 59 7 15 28 Olive oil 105 — 30 — Total cereals 1,647 582 18 48 Butter 57 12 56 50 Skimmed milk powder 0 1— 0 2— 1 Less than 500 tonnes. 2 United Kingdom SMP stocks at 31 December 1988 were negligible.
§ Mr. Austin MitchellTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if, further to his reply dated 25 May,Official Report, column 744, concerning the common agricultural policy, he will explain the reasons for the increase in expenditure in 1988 of over 20 per cent.; and whether this was anticipated at the time of the Fontainebleau agreement.
§ Mr. CurryAs explained in my previous reply, the 1987 budget year carried only 10 months' expenditure. Because of the change to a system of delayed advances for funding from the guarantee section of the European agricultural guidance and guarantee fund, 4,534 mecu (£3,261 million) of expenditure in November and December 1987 were charged to the 1988 budget. Total CAP expenditure for the 1987 calendar year was therefore 28,497 mecu (£20,418 million)—2 per cent. less in real terms than the expenditure954W charged to the 1988 budget. It is not possible to compare expenditure in calendar year 1987 with that in calendar year 1988.
§ Mr. Austin MitchellTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1) whether he will publish in theOfficial Report a table on the same basis as that given in the answer of 4 December 1984, Official Report, columns 105–116, showing for each of the commodities covered by the common agricultural policy (a) the amount currently in surplus, (b) the target/ threshold/intervention price in the United Kingdom, (c) the corresponding price in West Germany, (d) the corresponding central price for the European Economic Community, (e) the levy in the United Kingdom at the latest available date, (f) the world price and (g) the amount sold to third markets with financial assistance from the European Economic Community;
(2) whether he will publish in the Official Report a table showing the tonnage of each agricultural product exported to non-European Economic Community countries under the common agricultural policy and the cost to the European Economic Community in each case; and if he will revise as necessary the figures given in his written answer of 28 April, Official Report, columns 315–16;
(3) whether he will publish in the Official Report a table showing the estimated amount of each common agricultural policy product consumed in the United Kingdom in 1988, the height of the tariff or guaranteed threshold minimum price, the amount of the levy paid at the latest available date and the corresponding world price.
§ Mr. GummerInformation on surplus production, as measured by self-sufficiency, is contained in the Commission's publication "The Agricultural Situation in the Community, 1988 Report", in particular, table 3.7.3. Details of institutional prices (in ecu and £ sterling) are contained in annex 1 of the note on the common agricultural policy price settlement 1989–90, deposited in the Library of the House on 17 May 1989. The prices applicable in Germany can be derived from the ecu prices using the green rates as follows: Cereals—2.37360, other crops and sheepmeat—2.36110; other animal products—2.35053.
The import levies and threshold prices applicable in the United Kingdom on 21 July 1989 and the corresponding "world" prices are shown in table 1. I remind the hon. Member that the world prices shown are generally the lowest offer prices at the Community frontier which underlie the Commission's calculation of the variable import levies. These prices are the lowest recorded and it is likely that, on average, higher prices would have to be paid if larger quantities were to be purchased on world markets or if supplies to world markets diminished. Information on the consumption of agricultural products in the United Kingdom, as measured by "total domestic uses", is contained in "Agriculture in the United Kingdom, 1988". I must caution strongly against drawing conclusions from this particular array of data requested.
Details of exports sold to third countries with financial assistance from the European Community are not available. Total exports from the Community in 1988 of selected commodities are shown in table 2; these will include some products exported without financial 955W assistance. An analysis of expenditure on export refunds by product in 1988 is set out in annex 2 of the draft 18th financial report for EAGGF guarantee section.
Table 1 Levy applicable in the United Kingdom, threshold price and notional "World" price on 21 July 1989 for main food Hems covered by the common agricultural policy Threshold equivalent price1 Levy applicable in United Kingdom2 Notional World" price3 (£ tonne) (£ tonne) Common Wheat 166 72 99 Barley 151 72 83 Maize 165 94 76 Sugar (White) 456 4165 300 Butter (82 per cent, fat) 2,428 51,448 1,021 Cheese (Cheddar) 2,514 1,691 880 Skimmed Milk Powder 1,406 476 959 Beef and Veal 2,781 6l,701 1,209 Pigmeat 1,519 383 905 Sheepmeat 2,403 7 8 Poultrymeat 1,049 246 864 Eggs 855 156 472 Notes:
All figures have been rounded to nearest £.
1 For commodities for which there is no threshold price the following have been used: beef and veal—guide price converted to deadweight (using a killing out percentage of 53.8 per cent.); pigmeat—basic price; poultrymeat and eggs—sluicegate prices plus basic levy; sheepmeat—seasonalised basic price adjusted for stabiliser. All conversions at green rate.
2 Levy is net of monetary compensatory amounts. Rates of levy vary for different tariff headings. The rates quoted are: beef and veal and pigmeat—carcase; poultrymeat—70 per cent. chickens; eggs—in shell.
3Notional "World" prices have been calculated by subtracting the levy applicable from the "threshold" price. The beef price is also adjusted for duty. For pigmeat, poultrymeat and eggs the "World" price has been taken as the sluicegate price, less supplementary levy, where appropriate. The resulting estimate has been converted from ecu/t at the agricultural market rate of exchange: £0.762070 = 1 ecu on 21 July 1989.
4 in practice the United Kingdom's imports from third countries are normally covered by the Lome convention and enter the Community levy-free.
5 A special lower rate of levy is applicable to imports of butter from New Zealand.
6 Most imports of beef from third countries are subject to special arrangements allowing entry at reduced levy rate.
7 Imports of lamb under voluntary restraint arrangements with principal suppliers and related agreements are subject to a reduced charge of 10 per cent. ad valorem. Any imports outside these arrangements are subject to levies which cannot exceed the 20 per cent. tariff bound in the GATT.
8 No appropriate "World" price is available.
Exports from the European Community1 of selected CAP commodities to non-EC countries: 1988 '000s tonnes Wheat 12,387 Wheat flour 2,562 Barley 6,434 Malt 1,031 Rice 332 Sugar2 of which: 4,535 Raw (white equivalent) 24 Refined 4,511 Olive oil 144 Oilseeds 116 Whole milk powder 343 Skimmed milk powder 607 Condensed milk 383 Butter and Buttermilk 620 Beef and veal 615 Sheepmeat 6 Pigmeat 296 Poultrymeat 389 Eggs 82 Wine3 1,211 Source: EUROSTAT.
1 Excludes figures for Greece from August 1988.
2 Includes raw sugar converted to refined sugar equivalent: I tonne raw sugar =0.92 tonne refined sugar.
3 The figure previously shown for 1985 has been revised to 1,095 thousand tonnes.
956WCopies of the documents referred to are in the Library of the House.