§ Mr. AncramTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what representations he has received about small rural abattoirs; what he intends to do to promote their viability; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. SoamesI refer the hon. Member to the reply that my right hon. Friend the Minister gave to a question from890W the hon. Member for Taunton (Mr. Nicholson) on 2 December 1992, Official Report, columns 223–24. Many right hon. and hon. Members have written to me about small abattoirs since 2 December.
On the initiative of my right hon. Friend the Minister, the December Council of Agriculture Ministers agreed to increase the throughput limit for small slaughterhouses from 12 to 20 units per week until 31 December 1994. The Commission has been asked to review during 1993 the implications of the meat hygiene directives for small businesses. The Government will work closely with the Commission as it carries out this review.
No small business was forced to close on 1 January because it did not comply with the structural standards required by the fresh meat directive. The agriculture departments have issued time-limited licences to all businesses which have not completed the licensing process provided for in the Fresh Meat (Hygiene and Inspection) Regulations 1992. The arrangements for temporary derogations will ensure that no small premises is required to comply with the full structural requirements of the directive until the Commission has completed its review.
My right hon. Friend the Minister and I intend to look in detail at any recommendations from officials to refuse or revoke licences. We will not hesitate to take action where there are real hygiene problems, but we are not prepared to see small businesses closed as a result of over-zealous application of the regulations.
We issued further guidance on 30 November 1992 making it easier for local authorities to provide a cost-effective veterinary ante-mortem inspection service at small abattoirs. We are also consulting on proposals to set statutory limits on the amount local authorities can charge for the inspection service based on the reasonable cost of providing the inspection service required by the new regulations. We remain concerned about some of the veterinary costs being quoted. We consider that work carried out on a guaranteed contract basis should be charged at a lower hourly rate than ad hoc visits. We shall continue to monitor the level of inspection costs very closely.