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AGRICULTURE, FISHERIES AND FOOD
Civil Servants (Ethnic Minorities)
Mr. Vaz: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1) if he will provide a breakdown, in numerical and percentage terms, of the ethnic origin of civil servants in his private office, as at 1 October 1997; [56798]
- (2) if he will provide a breakdown, in numerical and percentage terms, of the ethnic origin of civil servants in his Department, by grade, as at 1 October 1997. [56796]
Mr. Morley: I refer my hon. Friend to the answers given by my right hon. Friend the Minister for the Cabinet Office on 5 November 1998, Official Report, columns 666-70.
Food Production
Mr. Levitt: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what recent meetings he has had with the supermarket industry to discuss its influence on the food production policies of farmers; and if he will make a statement. [57304]
Mr. Rooker: Our right hon. Friend the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food met representatives of the British Retail Consortium on 3 November. I was present, as was our noble Friend Lord Donoughue.
Meat Inspection Charges
Mr. Gill: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food in which other EU countries meat inspection charges are levied on the industry; and at what rate. [57724]
Mr. Rooker: Council Directive 85/73/EEC (as amended) on the financing of veterinary inspections and controls requires Member States to recover the costs of those hygiene inspections conducted at licensed fresh meat premises in accordance with harmonised EC meat hygiene rules. The Directive sets minimum standard charges (in ECU) applicable in all Member States for hygiene inspections of red meat, poultry meat and game meat dependent on the species and size of animals being slaughtered. Subject to meeting specified criteria such as the efficiency of operations at individual plants, the Directive provides for the standard charge to be abated by up to 55 per cent. Conversely, where the actual cost of inspection exceeds the standard charge, the Directive provides for actual costs to be charged. Similar principles apply in respect of charges for cutting plants.
The actual level of hygiene inspection charges levied on individual meat plants is set by the competent authority in each Member State within the framework laid down by the Directive. Information about the level of such charges in other Member States is not yet available. I am seeking such information and will write to the hon. Member, although this may take some time.
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Mr. Edwards:
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what plans he has to require manufacturers to inform consumers when the content of food has been genetically modified. [57953]
Mr. Rooker:
It is already a requirement of the EC Novel Foods and Novel Food Ingredients Regulation (258/97) and EC Regulation 1139/98 concerning the compulsory labelling of foodstuffs produced from genetically modified soya and maize that foods are clearly labelled to show when they contain genetically modified materials.
Mr. Harvey:
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will ensure that his Department's response to the instructions in the report of 28 August 1998 by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration with regard to compensation for Mr. D. J. Kennard conforms to Government Accounting Standards 3/97 amendment 7, chapter 36.3. [57970]
Mr. Rooker:
The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food has already paid to Mr. and Mrs. D. J. Kennard the compensation recommended by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration (in his report of 28 August 1998) relating to delays in the administration of the 1993 sheep quota national reserve. The payment was consistent with Treasury Guidance on financial redress.
Mr. Harvey:
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what is his policy for compensating people whom the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration concludes have suffered an injustice as a result of maladministration by his Department. [57973]
Mr. Rooker:
Where the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration concludes that an individual has suffered an injustice as a result of maladministration by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, the Ministry normally accepts and implements any recommendations for redress made by the Ombudsman, having regard to central financial guidance.
Mr. Nigel Jones:
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what investigations his Department has carried out into the recent trend in the number of cases of strangles in UK-based horses; and if he will make strangles a notifiable disease. [57874]
Mr. Rooker:
I am aware that the horse industry is concerned over the prevalence of strangles reported in horses in the UK and elsewhere. However, this is a matter for the industry which is best placed to control it, and Codes of Practice published by the Horserace Betting Levy Board already incorporate guidelines on strangles. I have no plans to make strangles a notifiable disease.
Mr. Letwin:
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what assessment he has made of the
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danger to the native honey bee arising from imported honey bees; and if he will make it his policy to ban the importation of honey bees. [58221]
Mr. Rooker:
Imports of honey bees are currently allowed from other Member States provided they are accompanied by a health certificate. Imports of Queen bees with attendant workers are also permitted from Australia, Fiji, Hawaii, and New Zealand under licence and with a health certificate.
I have no evidence that such legal importation of honey bees poses any threat and therefore have no grounds upon which to base a ban. Our technical advisers at the National Bee Unit are currently undertaking a risk assessment to help us determine whether we should also allow imports of bee packages from New Zealand. No decisions will be taken until we have that assessment.
Mr. Jenkins:
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what assistance his Department is currently giving to livestock producers; and if he will make a statement. [58274]
Mr. Rooker:
Government action to assist livestock producers is constrained by the rules of the CAP. Nevertheless, we have successfully lobbied the Commission to grant Private Storage Aid in the UK in both the pigmeat and sheepmeat sectors. In addition, following representation from the UK and others, the Commission agreed on two occasions, most recently on 15 October, to increase payments of export refunds on pigmeat.
With regard to the beef sector, we have agreed with other Member States that advance payments under the 1998 Beef Special Premium and Suckler Cow Premium Schemes will be increased from 60 per cent. to 80 per cent. This means bringing forward some £100 million of payments to the industry which would otherwise not have been available until the spring of next year.
Mr. Cox:
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what was the estimated cost to his Department of the payment of grants to farmers who were unable to move cattle as a result of the radioactive fall-out from the Chernobyl accident. [58658]
Mr. Rooker:
The only Food Protection Orders which came into force as a result of the Chernobyl accident concerned the movement, sale and slaughter of sheep. There were no Food Protection Orders on the movement of cattle. Therefore no payments of grants to cattle farmers were necessary.
Mr. Opik:
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what plans the Government have to enforce United Kingdom meat production standards on non-EU imported meat. [58568]
Mr. Rooker:
I refer the hon. Member to the reply to my hon. Friend the Member for High Peak (Mr. Levitt) on 2 November 1998, Official Report, column 431.
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Mr. Duncan:
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1) what recommendations have been made to his Department by the Spongiform Encephalopathy Advisory Committee following the finding of abnormal prion protein in the appendix of a patient in Torbay; what steps he has taken to implement the recommendations; and if he will make a statement; [57202]
Mr. Rooker:
I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to him by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health on 3 November 1998, Official Report, columns 532-36.
Mr. Duncan:
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what meetings his Department has had with representatives of (a) the Spongiform Encephalopathy Advisory Committee and (b) the Central Veterinary
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Laboratory following the finding of abnormal prion protein in the appendix of a patient in Torbay; and if he will make a statement. [57201]
Mr. Rooker:
I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to him by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health on 3 November 1998, Official Report, columns 532-36. A member of the staff of the Central Veterinary Laboratory is a technical adviser at SEAC meetings.
(2) what meetings his Department has had, with which bodies, following the finding of abnormal prion protein in the appendix of a patient in Torbay; and if he will make a statement. [57128]
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