§ Dr. StrangTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what the farm and conservation grant scheme comprehended in the past; what it comprehends today; what proportion of the cost of each eligible scheme, in and outside the less-favoured areas was met by the Government before and after variations to the scheme made since its inception; and what, in real and actual terms, has been the expenditure on each element of the scheme for each year both inside and outside the less-favoured areas.
§ Mr. Waldegrave[holding answer 21 July 1994]: The farm and conservation grant scheme, set up in 1989, covers a wide range of investments. The items eligible for grant and the rates of grant payable since the scheme's inception, both within and outside the less-favoured areas, are set out in the scheme legislation, copies of which are available from the Library of the House. The statutory instruments concerned are:
The Farm and Conservation Grant Scheme 1989 SI No. 128The Farm and Conservation Grant (Variation) Scheme 1990 SI No. 1126The Farm and Conservation Grant (Variation) Scheme 1991 SI No. 1338The Farm and Conservation Grant (Variation) Scheme 1993 SI No. 2901The Farm and Conservation Grant (Variation) Scheme 1994 SI No. 1302The Farm and Conservation Grant Regulations 1989 SI No. 219The Farm and Conservation Grant (Amendment) Regulations 1990 SI No. 1125The Farm and Conservation Grant Regulations 1991 SI No. 1630The Farm and Conservation Grant (Amendment) Regulations 1992 SI No. 3174The Farm and Conservation Grant (Amendment) Regulations 1993 SI No. 2900The table shows in cash terms expenditure on each element of the scheme for each year both inside and outside the less-favoured areas since the scheme's inception. A similar table showing expenditure in real terms is not readily available.
covered by the Agricultural Wages Order 1994, for each region and county of England;
(2) what is her latest estimate of the total number of persons whose pay and conditions are covered by the Agricultural Wages Order 1994.
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Mr. Waldergrave[holding answer 21 July 1994]: The Agricultural Wages Order 1994 covers both England and Wales. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales is replying separately in respect of the workers covered by the order in Wales. Based on the June agricultural and horticultural census, it is estimated that the numbers of workers in England covered by the Agricultural Wages Order 1994 was 171,732 as at June 1993. Estimates for each region and county in England, excluding workers on minor holdings, are given in the following table.
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Estimated number of workers covered by the Agricultural Wages Board for each county in England as at June 19931 Number Cleveland 358 Cumbria 3,115 Durham 1,301 Northumberland 2,248 Tyne and Wear 264 North Region 7,286 Humberside 5,020 N/Yorks (N'Allerton) 7,550 N/Yorks (Beverley) 1,899 North Yorkshire 9,449 South Yorkshire 1,146 West Yorkshire 2,085 Yorks/Humberside Region 17,700 Derbyshire 2,388 Leicestershire 2,388 Lincolnshire 10,908 Northamptonshire 1,882 Nottinghamshire 2,498 East Midlands Region 20,064 Cambridgeshire 5,071 Norfolk 10,067 Suffolk 6,625 East Anglia Region 21,763 Bedfordshire 1,397 Berkshire 1,066 Buckinghamshire 1,685 East Sussex 2,709 Essex 5,979 Greater London (E) 284 Greater London (SE) 611 Greater London 895 Hampshire 5,281 Hertfordshire 1,556 Isle of Wight 629 Kent 13,112 Oxfordshire 2,592 Surrey 2,708 West Sussex 5,068 South East Region 44,677 Avon 2,810 Cornwall 4,502 Isles of Scilly 56 Cornwall and Isles of Scilly 4,558 Devon 6,556 Dorset 3,152 Gloucestershire 3,108 Somerset 5,371 Wiltshire 3,244 South West Region 28,799
Number Hereford & Worcester 8,145 Shropshire 4,485 Staffordshire 3,706 Warwickshire 2,347 West Midlands 486 West Midlands Region 19,169 Cheshire 3,884 Greater Manchester 1,119 Lancashire 5,447 Merseyside 649 North West Region 11,099 1 The data in this table relate to main holdings only, ie. excludes data on minor holdings. The number of workers covered by the Agricultural Wages Board comprises the following categories: regular hired workers and seasonal and casual workers.
§ Dr. StrangTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, pursuant to her answer to the hon. Member for Ealing, North (Mr. Greenway) of 14 July,Official Report, column 715, if she will publish the evidence that employers in a number of sectors of the industry are now questioning the value of keeping the present arrangements for statutory wage determination across the agriculture sector.
§ Mr. Waldegrave[holding answer 21 July 1994]: Comments received as part of last year's consultation exercise on the future operation of the Agricultural Wages Board have already been made available for scrutiny in the Ministry. We have written to those offering comments since the end of the consultation period and—in cases where consent has been given—we have made these available in the same way.