§ Bob RussellTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what representations she has received from the(a) Youth Hostels Association and (b) the British Trust for Conservation Volunteers about financial losses caused by the foot and mouth crisis; what proposals she has to compensate these organisations; and if she will make a statement. [26230]
§ Alun MichaelI have corresponded with the Youth Hostels Association and met their Chairman and Chief Executive, as has my hon. Friend the Minister for Tourism, Film and Broadcasting I have also received around 200 letters from hon. Members on behalf of constituents concerned about the impact on the YHA's income of foot and mouth disease and the measures taken to control it. The YHA estimate that they lost £5 million 2001 out of an annual income of £30 million.
I have also met representatives from the British Trust for Conservation Volunteers and discussed the impact of foot and mouth disease on their activities. I understand that the losses they suffered are in the region of £250,000 out of an annual income in the order of £23 million.
I am well aware of the impact that foot and mouth disease had on a range of charities, especially those involved in promoting countryside access. The measures we put in place to help affected businesses were mainly focused on small businesses, and were not well adapted to helping national organisations such as the YHA or BTCV. During later stages we modified the guidelines for the 605W Business recovery fund to clarify that charities' individual business units may be treated as separate business entities and may receive assistance in their own right if their applications meet the fund's other criteria. Charities may also benefit from rate relief granted by local authorities (for which we raised the rate of central subsidy from 75 per cent. to 95 or 98 per cent. in rural areas) and from the deferral of tax payments due. We have also put a lot of effort into encouraging local authorities into reopening footpaths as soon as possible to attract visitors back to the countryside, and put extra resources into tourism promotion via the British Tourist Authority and English Tourism Council.
I accept that the help available is modest compared with the losses that organisations such as the YHA have suffered. It is not possible to provide compensation to charities for loss of income, any more than to farming or non-farming businesses affected by the disease and by the measures to control it. As explained in "England's Rural Future" published on 13 December, we are looking urgently and sympathetically at further measures to help charities—especially those involved in promoting countryside access—to recover from the impact of foot and mouth disease.