HC Deb 09 May 1994 vol 243 cc41-2W
Mr. Simon Hughes

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what support she is giving to the promotion of the British cheese industry.

Mr. Jack

[holding answer 29 April 1994]: The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food supports the promotion of the British cheese industry in several ways. It seeks to in (a) arable aid scheme set-aside payments and (b) total arable area scheme payments in England following the 1993–94 harvest.

Mrs. Gillian Shephard

The total amount paid to date in Engalnd under the arable area payments scheme in respect of the 1992–93 scheme year is just over £681 million, including set-aside payments of £125 million. No payments have yet been made in respect of the 1993–94 scheme year.

Dr. Strang

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many farms in England had hectarages of land under cereals greater than(a) 1,000 hectares, (b) 500 hectares and (c) 250 hectares in the last available year.

Mrs. Gillian Shephard

The number of holdings in England with more than 1,000 hectares of land under cereals—excluding maize—estimated from the June 1993 agricultural census, was four. The number with more than 500 hectares and the number with more than 250 hectares of cereals was 96 and 916 respectively.