§ Mr. GibbTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans she has to channel production-linked farm subsidies into rural development schemes. [107806]
§ Mr. MorleyGovernment have redirected, and match funded, a proportion of production linked subsidy payments into rural development measures since 2001. In the current negotiations on CAP reform we are pressing for both a shift in support from production-linked subsidies to environmental and rural development measures and a significant increase in the UK's share of current EU funding for rural development programmes. We are committed to increasing expenditure on the England Rural Development Programme. The detailed480W arrangements for delivering this commitment will depend on the outcome of the on-going negotiations on the reform of the CAP.