§ 24. Mr. MacShaneTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what estimate he has made of the impact on the agriculture industry of pay settlements agreed by the agricultural wages board; and if he will make a statement. [21628]
§ Mr. BoswellFollowing each pay settlement, the Ministry makes an assessment of the overall cost to the agricultural industry. We also commission more detailed, and external, studies from time to time. The most recent study was carried out by the London school of economics in 1993. This considered the overall impact of minimum wages on employment in the agricultural industry, as part of our wider review of the operation of the agricultural wages board. A copy of this study was placed in the Library of the House in July 1994.