§ Mr. WalterTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what proportion of applications for 297W management agreements under the countryside stewardship scheme were rejected in (a) 1996, (b) 1997 and (c) 1998 to date. [56549]
§ Mr. Morley[holding answer 27 October 1998]: In 1996, 2,584 Countryside Stewardship applications were received and 1,135 agreements offered (43.9 per cent); in 1997, 2,217 applications were received and 1,197 agreements were offered (54 per cent.); and, in 1998, 2,444 applications were received and we plan to offer approximately 1,344 agreements (55 per cent.). The approved applications were those which offered best value for money; the rejected applications include those which were ineligible.
§ Mr. WalterTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what assessment his Department has made of the implications of budget reductions on the countryside stewardship agri-environment scheme. [56667]
§ Mr. Morley[holding answer 27 October 1998]: The Countryside Stewardship budget has increased annually, enabling new agreements with a first year cost of £5.9 million in 1997 and £6.5 million this year to be approved.
§ Mr. WalterTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what action is presently being taken by his Department to promote countryside stewardship in Dorset. [56665]
§ Mr. Morley[holding answer 27 October 1998]: The Ministry is consulting interested local organisations and statutory bodies to identify the priorities for the scheme for the coming year. We will also clarify the scale of funding available and thus the number of applications it would be reasonable to consider.
§ Mr. WalterTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1) how much of his Department's budget has been allocated to the countryside stewardship agri-environment scheme in(a) 1998 and (b) 1999; [56666]
(2) what plans he has to increase the budget allocation to the countryside stewardship agri-environment scheme. [56668]
§ Mr. Morley[holding answer 27 October 1998]: The financial provision for the Countryside Stewardship scheme for payments to agreement holders in 1998/99 is £21.2 m. The budget for the scheme in 1999/2000 is still under consideration but it will be an increase on this year.