| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy
9. Mr. Jon Owen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what talks he has had with representatives of the farming and meat industry in Wales concerning BSE; and if he will make a statement. [25640]
Mr. Hague: My hon. Friend the Under-Secretary of State for Wales, the hon. Member for Cardiff, North (Mr. Jones), and I have met representatives of the farming and meat industry on a number of occasions and my hon. Friend met representatives of the abattoir industry and Welsh Food Promotions Ltd. on 17 April. My hon. Friend is today attending the Agriculture Council in Luxembourg with my right hon. and learned Friend the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.
Mr. Jones: Will the Secretary of State confirm that, even though the carcase disposal scheme for cull cattle was due to start today, there are as yet no licensed abattoirs and there are no designated centres for collection yet? The farmers in Wales are confused and angry that the Government's inaction and incompetence are clearly the main reasons why the beef ban still remains. Three weeks after the European Union agreed to pay for the scheme, there is no sign of it being implemented.
Mr. Hague: The 30-month scheme will start this week, as was intended--it is likely to start around the middle of the week. It has been necessary to have an extensive consultation process--the industry would not have wanted it any other way. It is a complicated scheme and it is important that it commands confidence and general support. Our priority is to restore market confidence at home and abroad, and we shall continue to do that, in frequent and close consultation with the industry in Wales.
Mr. Biffen: Is my right hon. Friend aware that many farmers who are privileged to be Welsh use Oswestry market? Is it his judgment that the Government's slaughter programme--covering cull cows and other categories--consigns to death and incineration an enormous number of cattle that show no sign of BSE? How does he think that that will restore public confidence in beef eating?
Mr. Hague: My right hon. Friend will know that many of the actions that the Government are taking are based on scientific recommendations. In the case of the scheme that my right hon. Friend mentioned, the Government are going further than the scientific recommendations--indeed, that is the cause of his anxiety. It is clear from what scientists have said to us that BSE is most likely to occur in older cattle, so the removal from the food chain of cattle of 30 months and older is a confidence-building measure--it was specifically asked for by the National Farmers Union.
Mr. Ieuan Wyn Jones: I congratulate the Secretary of State on acceding to representations from Opposition parties for a Welsh Office ministerial level representative to attend today's meeting of the Council of Ministers in Luxembourg, which is good news. Farmers are extremely worried about the delay in the implementation of the slaughter policy scheme.
I shall remind the Secretary of State of two fair questions posed by the hon. Member for Cardiff, Central (Mr. Jones). First, when will we be told about the designated collection points, bearing in mind the geographical difficulty of taking animals to those points in many parts of rural Wales? Secondly, how many abattoirs in Wales have been licensed for the procedure? It is crucial that there should be no further delay in giving the farmers the information that they need so that the schemes can be fully implemented as soon as possible.
Mr. Hague:
I take the hon. Gentleman's point about the need for farmers and others in the industry to know further details of the schemes as soon as possible. However, I am sure that the hon. Gentleman will understand that it is better for the schemes to be introduced properly than to be introduced in such haste that they do not work properly. Officials in the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and the Welsh Office are working hard, in consultation with the industry, to ensure that all the information for which the hon. Gentleman asks is given as soon as possible. They will continue working extremely hard until that information is available.
Mr. Ron Davies:
The Secretary of State's answers have no credibility. He said in reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Cardiff, Central (Mr. Jones) that the scheme would be operating mid week. He has just said in reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Ynys Mon (Mr. Jones) that he hopes to be able to make the announcements. How can he expect the agricultural industry and associated industries in Wales to respond to a scheme that is due to start on Wednesday or Thursday this week if he has not even taken the basic steps of identifying the collection centres and licensing the abattoirs? His answers have no credibility.
The right hon. Gentleman clearly does not understand that the Government's confusion and delay in handling the BSE issue is one of the reasons why they are now viewed with such distrust and derision by the country at large. Does he seriously expect co-operation from Europe in lifting the export ban when domestic policy is in such a shambles and when the Foreign Secretary is writing around soliciting individual Cabinet members to produce schemes to disrupt the Union? Is it not the case that Ministers are now too busy appeasing warring factions within the Conservative party to provide effective and decisive government? Why on earth should the country's vital economic interests be sacrificed because of internal wrangling in the Conservative party?
Mr. Hague:
It is a bit rich for Labour Members to criticise the Government over the BSE issue when the hon. Member for Peckham (Ms Harman) did so much wanton damage to the beef industry. The group that is greeted with the most derision and distrust by farmers comprises one or two Opposition Members who have performed in the same way as the hon. Lady.
The hon. Gentleman would not want us to carry through the process without consulting the industry closely, and I am sure that he would not want it done in such haste that it did not work properly. That is why the consultations have been carried out.
10. Mr. Llwyd:
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what proposals he has to encourage a fully integrated public transport system in Wales; and if he will make a statement. [25641]
Mr. Hague:
Planning policy guidance to be issued soon will encourage local authorities to develop public transport facilities. I will also publish a transport policy statement later in the year.
Mr. Llwyd:
That is, at least, a fairly encouraging answer. The Minister referred earlier to the £2.9 billion that is to be spent on roads in Wales. Would not some of that money be better spent providing a fully integrated public transport system? When, if ever, will the Government take notice of the Welsh Affairs Committee report, which suggested that investment should be pumped into the railways to enable someone to travel from the north to the south of Wales in three and a half hours? When will we have a proper transport authority in Wales in order to ensure that the public transport system is attractive--the current system is no use to anyone?
Mr. Hague:
It is clearly important to continue to develop transport infrastructure in Wales. It is important also that, wherever possible, people have a choice of means of transport. As we have discussed already this afternoon, we have improved road infrastructure and we have provided substantial assistance to the railways throughout our time in office. Air transport--at least at Cardiff Wales international airport, with its enhanced passenger throughput--has also improved in recent years.
We must continue to improve all those forms of transport while taking account of how to protect the environment. When I put together my policy statement later in the year, I shall consider all the representations made to me--including those from the hon. Gentleman.
11. Mr. Sweeney:
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what steps he is taking to curb the growth of large out-of-town retail developments. [25642]
Mr. Hague:
I shall issue shortly planning guidance recognising the importance of town centres, including a strong retail base, and encouraging development within town centres rather than at out-of-town sites.
Mr. Sweeney:
In welcoming that statement, I express my gratitude to my right hon. Friend for visiting Cowbridge and for making an excellent speech at the Bear hotel on Saturday. During his visit, my right hon. Friend no doubt walked around Culverhouse Cross and saw for himself the congestion that is caused by out-of-town retail developments. I ask him to bear that in mind in bringing forward his proposals.
Mr. Hague:
I have seen a great deal of Culverhouse Cross and I was pleased also to visit the Bear hotel on Saturday. We shall set out a sequential test for new development in the new guidance: town centre sites where available, then edge-of-centre sites and, only when those
Mr. Win Griffiths:
I thank the Secretary of State for his reply, but we shall withhold our full congratulations until we have seen the details. Can he tell us the reason for the wasted years of the Wokingham regime? Was the change of mind due to his own policy initiative or has he sacked someone in the Welsh Office?
Mr. Hague:
I am sorry that the hon. Gentleman is withholding his full congratulations, but I look forward to receiving them in due course. In pursuing and putting together the planning policy guidance that will be published shortly, I have been developing the thinking of my right hon. Friend the Member for Wokingham (Mr. Redwood) and largely continuing what he originally intended. I am sure that the hon. Gentleman will welcome the guidance when it is published.
| Next Section
| Index | Home Page |