§ Mr. Andrew WelshTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what evidence his Department has about deterioration in terms of acidity of Scottish agricultural land over the past 10 years; and whether he will re-introduce a lime subsidy for Scottish agriculture.
§ Lord James Douglas-HamiltonThe farming industry is well aware that regular liming is an essential and cost-effective element of land husbandry and I understand that lime usage is currently at about the same level as it was when a general lime subsidy was available. We have no plans to reintroduce a lime subsidy, but grant assistance is available for the application of lime for certain grassland improvement operations under the farm and conservation grant scheme (EC).