HL Deb 09 May 2001 vol 625 c213WA
Lord Graham of Edmonton

asked Her Majesty's Government:

When they will publish the report of the Hills Task Force. [HL2135]

Baroness Hayman

The report was published today. The task force has achieved a great deal in three months and we are grateful to its members, particularly the farmers, who have had enormous personal worries due to foot and mouth disease.

We asked the task force to undertake a scoping study, and it has made a thorough one. It has made a number of recommendations, which we will need to examine carefully: to test the evidence and the value for money, to consider compliance with EU rules, and to hear the views of interested organisations including the other government departments which are affected. Some recommendations are for the longer term. Others might be more immediately useful in helping the industry, and particularly the hills sector, to recover from foot and mouth disease, and we shall need to look at these ones much more quickly.

The report is available in the House Libraries and on the MAFF website.