§ Mr. PickthallTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how the payment rate to abattoirs for slaughter of £107.50 per beast was arrived at. [35774]
§ Mr. BaldryA provisional fee of £87.50 per animal presented for slaughter under the over 30-month scheme was agreed by the Intervention Board executive agency in consultation with representatives from the slaughtering industry. There was no established rate for this work when the scheme was set up and the provisional fee, which covers slaughtering, butchering, staining and preparation for dispatch to a rendering plant or cold store, took into account uncertainty about costs on a disrupted market and the fact that income would not be derived from the offals. This provisional fee is guaranteed only for slaughterings up to and including 16 June. A substantive rate will be determined following an "open books" examination of slaughterers' costs by an independent third party which will report its findings shortly.