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Chicken Imports
Mr. Andrew George: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what assessment he has made of animal welfare standards among chicken producers who supply the UK from (a) Thailand, (b) Brazil and (c) other countries. [103290]
Mr. Morley: Under Article 8 of Directive 98/58/EC the EU Commission is charged with producing a report comparing animal welfare conditions in the EU with those in non-member countries supplying the Community.
Bovine Somatotropin
Mr. Pike: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on the moratorium on the use of BST in (a) the UK and (b) the EU; and if he will make a statement. [102762]
Ms Quin: A report by the Government's independent scientific advisory body, the Veterinary Products Committee (VPC), was published on 11 October and a copy of the report was placed in the Library of the House. We accepted the VPC's advice to support a continuation of the moratorium or equivalent measures which prohibit the use of recombinant BST. The European Commission has proposed a ban on the use of the recombinant BST with effect from 1 January 2000. The Government supports that proposal.
Pet Passports
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if, in relation to the pet passport scheme, the French Government have agreed to his Department's officials carrying out inspections in French ports. [102713]
Ms Quin: Discussions regarding arrangements for the surveillance of carrier activities participating in the pet passport pilot scheme to be introduced next year are still continuing.
Departmental Employees (Ethnic Minorities)
Mr. Crausby: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what percentage of the total workforce in his Department is of ethnic minority origin; and what steps he is taking to encourage the employment of people from the ethnic minorities in his Department. [102604]
Mr. Morley [holding answer 13 December 1999]: As at 1 April 1999, 6.3 per cent. of permanent staff in core MAFF (4.4 per cent. of staff in MAFF including its Agencies) had declared themselves to be of ethnic minority origin.
We encourage the employment of people of ethnic minority origin by a wide range of measures including the use of ethnic minority media as a means of advertising vacancies and attending a number of careers fairs aimed specifically at ethnic minority audiences. We have also recently reviewed and re-issued our Outreach Guidance.
10 Jan 2000 : Column: 101W
Mr. Andrew George:
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what assessment his Ministry has made of the reason for the decline in fishing stocks in the last three years by (a) stock and (b) area. [103666]
Mr. Morley
[holding answer 21 December 1999]: Not all fish stocks have declined in the past few years. For example, the large western mackerel stock has increased since 1994, and the Norwegian spring-spawning herring has doubled in size over the same period and has also extended its distribution.
Most of the whitefish stocks however remain at or near historically low levels. This is associated with high levels of fishing mortality. In the North Sea, the recent assessments indicate some reduction of fishing mortality on roundfish, which will help to restore those stocks.
All fish stocks are subject to great variations in the numbers of young produced each year. This variation is caused by changes in the size of the mature adult stock and annual changes in the environment being more or less favourable to the survival of larval fish. So even though stocks may be at generally low levels good or bad recruitment of young fish will cause the stocks to increase or decrease over periods of a few years.
Against this background of variation, some sea areas have experienced a general warming. While this may be favourable for some stocks, such as sole, it has apparently adversely affected the production of young cod, especially in the North Sea and in the Irish Sea.
Mr. Andrew George:
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many prosecutions there have been of fishermen landing at United Kingdom ports by (a) area, (b) weight of fish and (c) value of fish landed in each of the last five years. [103663]
Mr. Morley
[holding answer 21 December 1999]: Offences may be committed by fishermen at sea and on landing into the United Kingdom ports and abroad. Information in the form requested is not readily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Andrew George:
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what has been the additional cost to his Ministry of operating the designated fishing ports scheme. [103665]
Mr. Morley
[holding answer 21 December 1999]: The cost of operating the designated fishing ports scheme in respect of whitefish and shellfish landings made by UK vessels over 20 metres has been contained within the existing resources for fisheries enforcement.
Mr. Hunter:
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what representations he has (a) made to and (b) received from other European Governments about compatibility of the Fur Farming (Prohibition) Bill with the European Convention on Human Rights. [103553]
10 Jan 2000 : Column: 102W
Mr. Morley:
No such representations have been made or received.
Mr. Hunter:
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will set out the basis for his Department's statement on the compatibility of the Fur Farming (Prohibition) Bill with the European Convention on Human Rights; and if he will place the relevant documents in the Library. [103552]
Mr. Morley:
The Government's view is that the Fur Farming (Prohibition) Bill is compatible with the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). There are overriding moral arguments in favour of a ban and a general public interest in removing this particular source of livelihood. This has to be balanced against the interests of those whose source of livelihood is being removed and the Bill respects the ECHR by provision of a two to three year winding-down period, compensation for certain categories of loss, and the reference of disputes on compensation to arbitration or the Lands Tribunal. In the Government's view, the balance struck between the demands of the general interest in this matter and the interests of the individuals directly affected is a fair one.
Mr. Gill:
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, pursuant to the Government's reply to the eighth report from the Agriculture Committee, Session 1998-99 on Sea Fishing (HC 141-1) page ix, if he will make a statement on the expression, "with fishermen's interests protected by the legal concept of legitimate expectation". [103157]
Mr. Morley:
The rules under which quota allocations are made available to producer organisations and other groups within the fishing industry are the subject of annual consultation with industry representatives. Throughout the 1990s allocations have been linked to previous fishing activity. For most quota stocks, with the introduction of fixed quota allocations, this is now the catches made during the reference period 1994-96.
Mr. Andrew George:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the requirements for match public funds from his Department for the EU Objective 1 regions of (a) Cornwall and Scilly, (b) Merseyside and (c) South Yorkshire for each of the seven years of the programme. [104302]
Mr. Timms:
Responsibility for identifying match funding is a matter for project applicants and for the partnerships in the regions concerned. This ensures local ownership and commitment to the projects.
There are numerous possible sources for match funding including local authorities, Government schemes, the voluntary sector and the private sector.
The regional Government Offices are best placed to advise the partnerships on the sources of Government Departments' funding which can be used to match Structural Funds. The Government are updating and improving guidance on match funding.
10 Jan 2000 : Column: 103W
Barbara Follett:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans Her Majesty's Government have to issue a coin to commemorate the hundredth year of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother. [104427]
Mr. Gordon Brown:
Her Majesty The Queen has been graciously pleased to approve my recommendation that a crown piece should be issued this year in celebration of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother achieving her hundredth year. Collector versions of the coin will be available from early in the new year and the coin will also be available, later in the year, from banks and post offices at its face value of £5.
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