§ Mr. PawseyTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement about the milk quota regulations and administration that will follow the winding-up of the Milk Marketing Board.
§ Mr. CurryNew EC regulations on milk quotas will come into effect on 1 April 1993. The Dairy Produce Quotas Regulations 1991 will be amended as soon as the detailed EC rules have been agreed. These regulations will be further amended once a decision has been taken on the future arrangements for carrying out the administrative tasks which are currently performed on behalf of the Agriculture departments by the Milk Marketing Boards.
§ Mr. PawseyTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food when the Italian Government introduced a quota scheme for milk; what was the original allocation for Italy; what it is at the present time; what assessment he has made of the reasons for the delay in implementation of milk quotas in Italy; and if he will make a statement.
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§ Mr. CurryDomestic legislation to implement in full the milk quota system in Italy by allocating quota to individual producers was passed by the Italian Parliament in November 1992. When milk quotas were introduced in the EC in 1984, Italy was allocated in total 8.8 million tonnes of wholesale quota and 1.1 million tonnes of direct sales quota. In the current quota year (1992–93) Italy has at its disposal 8.3 million tonnes and 0.7 million tonnes respectively. No satisfactory explanation has been given by the Italian Government for the delay in fully implementing the quota system in Italy. The enforcement of the EC quota regulations is a matter for the EC Commission.