§ Caroline FlintTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1) what assistance his Department is providing for farmers who have lost crops through persistent wet weather in Don Valley; [149074]
(2) what estimate he has made of the value of crops lost due to adverse weather causing groundwater saturation in (a) Don Valley constituency and (b) South Yorkshire. [149075]
§ Ms QuinThe recent exceptionally wet weather in Don Valley and South Yorkshire has caused a number of difficulties for farmers, ranging from delay in normal seasonal cultivations to the actual loss of certain crops, in particular potatoes and sugar.
The Government have taken a number of steps to try to protect CAP payments to farmers and to provide £11.6 million in flood-related funding to the operating authorities to help defray exceptional emergency costs which would otherwise fall in part on farmers and the wider public.
In addition to the measures announced in reply to the right hon. Member for Skipton and Ripon (Mr. Curry) on 24 January 2001, Official Report, columns 594–95W, my right hon. Friend the Minister informed the House on 1 February that the European Commission had confirmed a number of further changes to our national implementing 121W arrangements for the Arable Area Payments Scheme this year. These include the ability to pay aid on certain partially failed crops and to allow farmers to set-aside land after 15 January where they have been unable to re-sow crops or where existing crops have been so flood damaged as to be incapable of yielding a harvest. We will shortly be writing to all farmers to explain in full what can now be allowed.