§ Mr. BakerTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food when the Order to implement the Fur Farming (Prohibition) Act 2000 will be made; on what date the Act will commence; and if he will make a statement. [148108]
§ Mr. Morley[holding answer 1 February 2001]: The Fur Farming (Prohibition) Act 2000 received Royal Assent on 23 November 2000. We will be consulting the industry on a statutory compensation scheme as required under the Act. Under section 7(3) of the Act, the 490W provisions relating to compensation for existing businesses in section 5 of the Act came into force two months after the Act received Royal Assent.
Under section 7(2) of the Act, the ban on fur farming will come into force on a date to be appointed by commencement order, which cannot be before 1 January 2003. However, fur farmers may close down at any time after Royal Assent and before the ban comes into force, without losing eligibility for compensation. A number have indicated a desire to do so, and we have now appointed independent consultants who will be visiting the fur farms this month. The purpose of this delayed commencement is to give fur farmers an opportunity to adjust their affairs and wind down their businesses in advance of the ban. The Government are committed to implementing the ban at the earliest opportunity.