HC Deb 15 January 1996 vol 269 cc435-41W
Mr. Malcolm Bruce

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what has been the expenditure of his(a) Department (b) agencies (c) non-departmental public bodies on newspaper advertising by title for each year since 1990–91; and what estimate he has made for 1995–96 based on expenditure to date and existing plans. [6559]

Mr. Douglas Hogg

MAFF advertisements have appeared in the following national and regional newspapers, periodicals and magazines during the period 1990 to 1995. The lists by title represent a wide range of promotional activities designed to communicate essential or useful information to the trade—farmers and growers concerning a variety of EU or other schemes and codes of good agricultural practice—and to the general public, particularly consumers regarding food safety and nutrition. The costs shown are media costs only and do not include VAT or other production costs. Press advertising by MAFF agencies is the responsibility of their chief executives. I have asked them to reply direct to the hon. Member.

1995–96 (up to 13 December 1995)
£
Arable Farming 2,502
Bella 55,500
Bella Favourites 1,350
Best 36,000
Bounty Babycare Guide 12,706
Bournemouth Evening Echo 262
British Farmer 3,569
Chat 28,000
Dairy Farmer and D Beef Prod 1,633
Estates Gazette 747
Famers Guardian 1,579
Farmers Weekly 12,761
Farming News 10,006
Farming News 4,701
London Gazette 150
Lymington Times 72
Mother and Baby 11,600
Parents 7,600
Scottish Farmer 290
Sheep Farmer 567
Southern Evening Echo 361
Take A Break 60,500
Times Educational Supplement 1,454
Woman 33,600
Womans Own 27,000
Total 314,509

1994–95
£
British Farmer 735
Daily Mail 12,960
Environmental Health News 683
Family Circle 11,300
Farmers Guardian 2,352
Farmers Weekly 9,754
Farmers News 5,138
Farming News 2,520
Guardian 8,208
Independent 7,000
Meat Trades Journal 542
Nature 5,767
New Scientist 10,470
Port Health Authorities Handbook 572
Prima 22,000
Radio Times 16,000
Readers Digest 2,500
Sheep Farmer 601
Total 119,101

1993–94
£
Aldershot News and Mail 529
Basingstoke Gazette 448
Bath (and West Evening) Chronicle 346
Bedfordshire Times 311
Berwick Advertiser 294
Birmingham Post 469
British Farmer 2,205
British Farmer 1,790
Cambridge Evening News 387
Chester Chronicle 352
Chichester Observer 230
Chronicle and Echo (Northampton) 400

1993–94
£
Cornish Guardian 273
Cornish Times 141
Cornishman 103
Crewe Chronicle 294
Cumberland News 337
Dairy Farmer and Dairy Beef Producer 325
Darlington and Stockton Times 515
Darlington Northern Echo 931
Derby Evening Telegraph 567
Derbyshire Times 1,626
Dorset Evening Echo (Weymouth) 407
East Anglian Daily Times (Ipswich) 526
Eastern Daily Press (Norwich) 1,090
Essex Chronicle 506
Evening News (Worcester/Hereford) 419
Evesham Journal 335
Exeter Express and Echo 378
Express and Star West Midlands/Shropshire Star 1,137
Farmers Guardian 6,726
Farmers Weekly 15,034
Farming News 18,086
Folkestone Herald/Dover Express 218
Gloucester Citizen 551
Gloucestershire Echo (Cheltenham) 340
Greenwich/Woolwich Mercury Ser 312
Grimsby Evening Telegraph 217
Hampshire Chronicle 314
Harrogate Advertiser 438
Hastings Observer/Bexhill Observer 1,092
Herald Series (Oxford) 302
Hereford Time 415
Herts Advertiser (St. Albans) 429
Herts Mercury 312
Hexham Courant 180
Hitchin Comet Series 203
Horse and Hound 578
Hull Daily Mail 672
Isle of Wight County Press 288
Journal (Newcastle) 595
Kent and Sussex Courier 467
Kent Messenger 1,346
Lancaster Guardian 256
Lancaster Evening Post (Preston) 665
Leamington Spa (and Warwick) Courier 351
Leicester Mercury 925
Lincolnshire Echo 304
Liverpool Echo 881
Loughborough Echo 269
Manchester Evening News 1,510
Mansfield Chad 574
Nature 2,598
New Scientist 4,680
Newark Advertiser Series 432
News Post Leader (South Shields) 339
News/World-Sunday Magazine 21,945
North Devon Journal (Barnstaple) 260
Nottingham Evening Post 1,643
Ormskirk Advertiser Group 194
Oxford Times 869
Peterborough Evening Telegraph 478
Pig Farming 329
Radio Times 7,320
Reading Chronicle 838
Salisbury Journal 551
Sheffield Star 1,800
Shropshire Star 600
Somerset County Gazette 440
Southern Eve Echo 399
Stafford Newsletter 257
Stoke Evening Sentinel 630
Stratford upon Avon Herald 258
Surrey Advertiser 553
Surrey Mirror 319

1993–94
£
Sussex Express 254
Telegraph and Argus (Bradford) 455
Tiverton Gazette Devon 176
Travel Trade Gazette—Europa 982
TV Times 3,939
Warrington Guardian 806
West Briton 315
Western Daily Press (Bristol) 591
Western Gazette (Somerset) 503
Western Morning News (Plymouth) 462
Westmorland Gazette 415
What's on TV 5,400
Wiltshire Gazette and Herald Series 317
Yorkshire Evening Press (York) 987
Yorkshire Post (Leeds) 963
Total 136,817

1992–93
£
BBC Holidays 3,652
Barbara Long Ticket Wallet 11,813
Big Farm Weekly 2,625
Business Life 4,523
Butcher and Processor 840
Caterer and Hotelkeeper 2,495
Crops 1,055
Farmers Guardian 4,419
Farmers Weekly 7,650
Farming News 5,760
Fish Trader 1,028
Fishing News 3,182
Flower Trades Journal 525
Forces News 525
Fresh Produce Journal 1,996
Garden (The) 599
Grocer The 1,580
Grower 1,386
High Life 8,385
Horticulture Week 1,468
Lloyds List 344
Macmillan/S Cut Nautical Almanac 655
Nature 1,502
New Scientist 4,100
News/World—Sunday Magazine 45,087
Nurseryman and Garden Centre 1,160
RAF Wives 457
Radio Times 2,560
Radio Times 17,940
RAF News 486
Skyscene 6,300
SSAFA News 352
TV Times 8,070
What's on TV 10,470
Total 164,989

1991–92
£
BBC Holidays 3,478
BBC Wild Life 2,118
Big Farm Weekly 1,890
British Homing World 254
Chat 2,127
Farmers Guardian 1,118
Farmers Weekly 1,620
Farming News 2,157
Forces Family Echo 798
High Life 15,972
Macmillan/S Cut Nautical Almanac 661

1991–92
£
Mail on Sunday—You Magazine 1,750
Motor Boat and Yachting 2,008
News/World—Sunday Magazine 18,564
Official Hyde Parks Festival Magazine 5,040
Practical Boat Owner 1,667
Racing Pigeon Weekly 326
Radio Times 7,178
RAF News 463
Reeds Nautical Almanac 1,986
Sunday Express Magazine 11,075
Thomson Holiday Guides 2,127
TV Times 5,420
Votre Livre du Bord 1,290
Womans Weekly 2,448
Yachting Monthly 1,910
Yachting World 1,943
Total 97,388

1990–91
£
British Tourist Authority 5,725
Country Life 2,100
DIT (Netherlands) 693
Editor 1,207
Fishing News 303
Fremdenverkehrswirtschaft 2,276
L'Agenzia Di Viaggi 731
E'Echo Touristique 3,229
Mother and Baby 1,900
Reeds Nautical Almanac 300
Sea Angler 368
Thomson Holiday Guides 16,239
Travel Express (Belgium) 1,200
Travel Trade Gazette 3,040
Total 39,311

Letter from T W. A. Little to Mr. Malcolm Bruce, dated 15 January 1996: The Minister has asked me to reply to your question on expenditure by the Veterinary Laboratories Agency (known as the Central Veterinary Laboratory until 30 September 1995) on newspaper advertising. Figures for expenditure on newspaper advertising by the Central Veterinary Laboratory can be found in a reply to a question (No. 17610) from Mrs. Ann Taylor by Mr. Jack on 18 April 1995. Expenditure consists essentially of recruitment advertising in relevant trade journals and local papers.

Letter from J. M. Rutter to Mr. Malcolm Bruce, dated 15 January 1996: The Minister has asked me to reply to your question about expenditure on newspaper advertising by the Veterinary Medicines Directorate, listed by title for each year since 1990/91, as this is an operational matter for which I am responsible. The VMD does not normally advertise directly in newspapers. The grant and expiry of Marketing Authorisations are announced in the official gazettes and the expenditure for 1994/95 was as follows:

£
Belfast Gazette 2,683
London Gazette 4,377
Edinburgh Gazette 3,823
10,833

It is anticipated that a similar amount will be spent in 1995/96. Figures for previous years are not available without incurring disproportional expense.

Letter from G. K. Bruce to Mr. Malcolm Bruce, dated 15 January 1996: The Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food has asked me to reply, in respect of the Pesticides Safety Directorate (PSD) to your question about expenditure on newspaper advertising since 1990–91. The Directorate was established as an executive agency on 1 April 1993. Figures prior to this date are not available. In 1993/4, PSD spent £481 on newspaper advertising and £4,440 in 1994/5. All expenditure is directly attributable to recruitment advertising. The 1993/4, 1994/5 and estimated 1995/6 figures can be broken down as follows:

£
1993–94
The Times and The Observer 391
The Review (free newspaper) 100
1994–95
Yorkshire Press (Post/Evening Post) 2,719
New Scientist Magazine 1,721
1995–96
New Scientist Magazine 2,000 (estimate)

Letter from Johnston McNeill to Mr. Malcolm Bruce, dated 15 January 1996: As Chief Executive of the Meat Hygiene Service (MHS), your question regarding expenditure on newspaper advertising for this agency has been passed to me for reply.

As you know, the MHS was established on 1 April 1995 and the expenditure for the period 1 April to 30 November was £25,095.66. The estimated figure for 1995/96 is £27,331.90.

Letter from Phillip Needham to Mr. Malcolm Bruce, dated 15 January 1996: The Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food has asked me to reply to you concerning your question (PQ number 236) in which you asked details of the expenditure relating to newspaper advertising for each year since 1990/91. ADAS was formed as an Executive Agency of MAFF in 1992. Any detail relating to expenditure prior to that date would be available from the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food. ADAS does not keep records of expenditure by title and we can only provide details of the total amount spent. The majority of advertising in both newspapers and journals relates to recruitment of staff and a relatively small amount is spent on advertising our commercial services. As you will know, ADAS operates as a commercial consultancy organisation providing a range of services to all the land-based industries. Expenditure has been as follows:

  • 1992/93: £52,000
  • 1993/94: £49,000
  • 1994/95: £102,000.
  • No estimates are available for 1995/96

Letter from George Trevelyan to Mr. Malcolm Bruce, dated 15 January 1996: The Minister has asked me to reply to your question about newspaper advertising by title for this Agency a) for each year since 1990–91 and b) the estimate made for 1995–96 based on expenditure to date and existing plans. The information in the form requested, by title, could not be provided without disproportionate cost. The advertising costs were for recruitment purposes and the totals were as follows:

Year £
1990–91 19,409
1991–92 14,210
1992–93 1,640
1993–94 2,108
1994–95 10,164

The estimated advertising costs for 1995–96 for recruitment purposes in the Agency is £16,000 of which £8,145 has been spent to date.

Letter from Professor P. I. Stanley to Mr. Malcolm Bruce, dated 15 January 1996: You asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food to provide information for each of his executive agencies relating to expenditure on newspaper advertising by title in each financial year since 1990/91. The Minister has asked me to reply to you in respect of his Central Science Laboratory (CSL) Agency as this is an operational matter for which I am responsible. Our records show that you asked a similar question in February of this year relating to expenditure on all forms of advertising but I am now aware that incorrect data was given to you. I apologies for that error but can now provide the correct information. CSL was first launched as a MAFF Executive Agency in April 1992. Thus my reply covers the years from 1992/93 to date. Further, the Agency was significantly enlarged in April 1994 following the merger with the MAFF Food Science Laboratories and this is reflected in increased expenditure from 1994/95. You requested only newspaper expenditure and by title for each year. I regret that the information is not readily available in this form and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost. However below are details of advertising expenditure, which includes advertising in specialist scientific journals as well as newspapers and is mainly for staff recruitment, as CSL is not involved in promotional advertising via this medium.

  • 1992/93: £29.6K
  • 1993/94: £50.0K
  • 1994/95: £59.0K
  • 1995/96: £89.8K (estimated).