§ Ms ChurchTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many information technology projects have been undertaken since 1992, and are planned for the coming year, arranged in cost bands of £1,000,000. [1917]
§ Mr. BoswellIn response to the above question, the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food have undertaken 722 information technology projects since 1992 to 1996 inclusive, and 145 are planned for 1997, subject to available funds.
On a financial year basis, all IT projects have fallen within the cost band £0 to £1,000,000 with the exception of certain major projects which are necessarily developed and implemented in "phases" across a number of years, such as those relating to common agricultural policy reform. If aggregated to the end of 1997, these projects would fall within two bands:
£1,000,000-£10,000,000: BSE systems, Establishment of Meat Hygiene Service;Greater than £10,000,000: CAP Reform, Resource Management Strategy, Farm Survey System and MAFF's corporate office system.