§ Mr. WelshTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales what acreage has been put into regeneration of the natural habitat in hill farming; and if he will evaluate the affect this will have on hill farm incomes.
§ Mr. Gwilym JonesThe environmentally sensitive areas scheme includes provisions for annual payments to farmers for the regeneration of heather moorland and other upland habitats. Some 22,000 acres of land are being managed under those tiers of the scheme in Wales. Other schemes also provide assistance to hill farmers for habitat enhancement but it is not possible to quantify the area of land benefiting from those schemes. It is not possible to isolate the effect which any of these measures will have on hill farm incomes.