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Departmental Computer Systems

Mr. Nigel Jones: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what plans he has to ensure that his Department's computer systems will be millennium compliant; and if he will make a statement. [1246]

Mr. Morley: A programme of millennium preparations consisting of a series of parallel projects covering different aspects of the Department's computer systems and the associated technical infrastructure has been established under the general direction of the Department's IT Steering Committee. Another project has been established to address "non-IT" equipment containing embedded microprocessor chip technology, ranging from lifts and security systems to scientific equipment, as these may also be affected.

Current rate of progress is consistent with the targets set by the Central IT Unit of the Cabinet Office and CCTA, namely that:

an audit to identify the work needed to address the date change in the Department's computer systems was completed earlier this year;
prioritised and costed plans for undertaking the work that is needed (which is already underway) will be provided to CCTA by October 1997;
preparations for all business critical systems will have been completed by 31 December 1998, subject where appropriate to a final check of end-of-year financial systems by April 1999.

Water Demand

Mr. Martyn Jones: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what research his Department has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated on the demand for water from (i) organic and (ii) conventional agricultural farms; and if he will make a statement. [1324]

Mr. Morley: The Department has commissioned research on present and future irrigation water requirements and the value of various water conservation methods and irrigation techniques in meeting those requirements. The research does not distinguish between organic and conventional agriculture. The final report of the study is expected shortly.

Set-aside Land

Mr. Martyn Jones: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what area of land is currently under set-aside; what percentage this is of agricultural land; and what are the equivalent figures in other EU Member states. [1326]

Mr. Rooker: The information requested is not yet available for the current year. Most farmers have only recently submitted their 1997 IACS applications which detail the areas they have set aside. However, the figures for 1996, as compiled by the European Commission, are given in the following table. The obligatory set-aside rate in 1996 was 10 per cent. but under the Arable Area Payments Scheme (AAPS) small scale producers do not have to set land aside. In addition, farmers may enter more than the minimum 10 per cent. of their arable area into set-aside if they wish.

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Member State	Set-aside (hectares)	Set-aside as percentage of land in the AAPS(24)
United Kingdom	485,020	11
Austria	115,340	10
Belgium	17,640	4
Denmark	220,712	11
Finland	169,807	13
France	1,405,629	10
Germany	1,206,903	12
Greece	15,255	1
Ireland	22,977	8
Italy	229,581	5
Luxembourg	1,745	5
Netherlands	9,532	2
Portugal	57,386	6
Spain	1,313,621	14
Sweden	308,656	19
EU total	5,579,804	11

(24) Land in the AAPS does not include pasture or areas sown to crops outside the scheme.

Waste Disposal (Hurd Deep)

Mr. Llew Smith: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what environmental monitoring his Department's radiobiology laboratories have conducted at the Hurd Deep site off Alderney; and if he will make a statement on his Department's policy for monitoring and compiling data on the disposal of toxic waste at sea. [1434]

Mr. Morley: MAFF has carried out monitoring for radioactivity in marine materials from around the Channel Islands since 1965, and from around the Hurd Deep itself since 1989. Materials sampled include fish, shellfish, seaweed, sediments and seawater. Results of this monitoring are compiled and published annually along with other result's of MAFF's programme for monitoring levels of radioactivity in the marine environment around the UK. Copies of these publications are placed in the Library of the House. The results show that man-made radioactivity around the Channel Islands is detectable but that levels are very low and give no cause for concern.

The Department also carries out an extensive programme of monitoring and research related to non-radioactive contaminants and the effects of disposal of waste at sea. The dumping of toxic waste at sea is not permitted.

Mr. Smith: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on the disposal of intermediate level radioactive waste arising from the UK Atomic Energy Authority's Research programme at the Hurd Deep. [1438]

Mr. Morley: Between 1950 and 1963, around 15,720 tonnes of radioactive waste was disposed of in the Hurd Deep. Most of this material originated from the UKAEA facility at Harwell, and it contained, in total, around 14.6 TBq of alpha activity and 47.0 TBq of beta and gamma activity. All of this waste was categorised at the time as low level. It is possible that very small amounts of waste which today would be regarded as intermediate level were included, but the overall levels of radioactivity in the material are low. Exposure of Channel Islanders to man-made radiation is less than 3 per cent. of the

2 Jun 1997 : Column: 105

recommended limit for members of the public, and is only a tiny fraction of the radiation dose received from natural sources.

Water Usage

Mr. Martyn Jones: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what statistics his Department collates on the amount of water used each year (a) on individual farms, (b) in farming areas and (c) in the agricultural industry as a whole; and if he will make a statement.[1325]

Mr. Morley: A Survey of Irrigation of Outdoor Crops is held periodically. The most recent survey covered the 1995 crop year, in England. Information about the amount of water used is collected from individual farms, but it is not possible to publish individual details for reasons of confidentiality.

The estimated total volume of water applied in 1995, for outdoor crops, was as follows:

Standard statistical region	Volume of water applied (thousand cubic metres)
North	924
Yorkshire and Humberside	17,767
East Midlands	27,676
East Anglia	62,560
South East	24,707
South West	5,552
West Midlands	21,839
North West	3,041
England	(25)164,067

(25) Figures do not add to total due to rounding.

Results of the 1995 Survey were published in MAFF Statistics Notice 222/96 (revised).

Organic Farming

Mr. Martyn Jones: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what area of land is currently farmed organically; what percentage this is of agricultural land; and what are the equivalent figures in other EU Member States. [1327]

Mr. Morley: As at 30 April 1997, there were 50,772 hectares of land in organic production in the UK. This represents about 0.3 per cent. of the total agricultural land available.

Available information shows that in 1996 organically farmed land constituted less than 1 per cent. of total agricultural area in Belgium, France, Greece, Ireland, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, Portugal and Spain; between 1 per cent. and 2 per cent. in Finland, Germany, Denmark and Italy; between 3 per cent. and 4 per cent. in Sweden; and between 7 per cent. and 8 per cent. in Austria. [Source of EC statistics: "Impact of EC Regulation 2078/92 on the development of organic farming in the European Union, Dr. Nicolas Lampkin, Welsh Institute of Rural Studies, Aberystwyth"]

Arable Area Payment

Mr. Tipping: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what was the (a) maximum, (b) minimum and (c) average payment made under the arable area payments scheme in 1996-97. [1723]

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Mr. Rooker: The highest payment made for a claim under the 1996 Arable Payments Scheme in England was for £2,007,993. The smallest payment that could be claimed was £60.68 but some claimants may have received less than this because of the application of administrative penalties under the Scheme. The average total payment per claim is estimated to be £23,605.

Animal Identification

Mr. Campbell-Savours: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, pursuant to his answer of 21 May, Official Report, column 102, on animal identification, what is the Community's deadline for the introduction of the database. [1516]

Mr. Rooker: 31 December 1999. But it is my intention to introduce a computer database well ahead of the Community's deadline.

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