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Property Sales
Mr. Breed:
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food on what dates the properties at (a) Towy Avenue, Llandovery, Dyfed, (b) Station Road, Honeybourne Avenue, Evesham, Worcestershire, (c) New
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Street, East Shilton, Hinckley, Leicestershire and (d) 357 Station Road, South Leigh, Oxfordshire, were offered for sale; and what is the current position with regard to the disposal of each property. [104685]
Mr. Morley:
The information requested is set out as follows:
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| Property | Current position |
|---|---|
| Towy Avenue, Llandovery, Dyfed | First offered for sale in June 1997. This property was sold in November 1999. |
| Station Road, Honeybourne, Evesham, Worcestershire | First offered for sale in August 1997. This property was sold in December 1997. |
| New Street, Earl Shilton, Hinckley, Leicestershire | First offered for sale in February 1996. Little interest from potential purchasers. Offer to purchase has recently been accepted and legal documentation is now being prepared. |
| Station Road, South Leigh, Oxfordshire | First offered for sale in November 1994. The property was sold in January 1998. |
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Fisheries
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food on what date the six and 12 mile derogations will expire. [105540]
Mr. Morley: Article 6 (1) of Council Regulation (EC) 3760/92 authorises member states to retain restrictions on access by foreign fishing vessels within six and twelve mile limits until 31 December 2002.
The Commission is due to report to the Council by 31 December 2001 on the operation of the Common Fisheries Policy. The Council, acting by Qualified Majority, will then take any necessary decisions, including on the future of the Article 6 provisions, by 31 December 2002. There is clear support for the maintenance of restrictions on access within the six and twelve mile limits. I expect those restrictions to continue after 2002.
Mr. Bercow:
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on his policy towards the encouragement of development of INFOMAR Systems Fishcast and Fishtrade, with particular reference to a possible pilot study on the United Kingdom. [105666]
Mr. Morley:
The INFOMAR systems were developed through an EU funded research project. The work led to the development of a software package which facilitates the dissemination of information and provides an ability to trade while at sea. The Government welcome the development of methods of improving communications and the trade in fish. The use of electronic information systems is one area which is being considered for funding under the Agenda 2000 fisheries aid programme.
Ms Walley:
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what proportion of dwellings in England with rat infestations were (a) not being treated and (b) had not been reported to the local authority on the most recent date for which figures are available. [105484]
Mr. Morley:
Details of the treatment of rat infestations are in the recent MAFF report "Rodent infestations in domestic properties in England", a copy of which has been placed in the Library of the House. The figures
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reflect the situation at a specific point in time and would not include cases where treatment was planned but had not yet started.
Information was not collected on the proportion of rat infestations which had not been reported to the local authority.
Ms Walley:
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on the findings of the (a) 1996 English House Condition Survey and (b) commensal rodent survey undertaken by his Department and the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health in 1993, on the number and proportion of dwellings in England affected by rat infestations. [105481]
Mr. Morley:
The results of the 1996 survey show that the general level of rodent infestations in England is low. The figures are lower for both rats and mice compared to the 1993 survey, although the results are not directly comparable due to different sampling methods. Full results of the 1996 survey are in the recent MAFF report "Rodent infestations in domestic properties in England", a copy of which together with the Ministry's News Release, has been placed in the Library of the House.
The Prevention of Damage by Pests Act 1949 requires local authorities to take such steps as may be necessary to keep, so far as is practicable, their district free of rodents and empowers them to require occupiers of land to take the necessary action to remove rodents from their land.
Mr. Cawsey:
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what estimate he has made of the additional costs to the pig sector as a result of the Welfare of Animals at Slaughter Act 1991 and the Welfare of Livestock Regulations 1994 since they came into force on 1 January 1999. [105435]
Mr. Morley
[holding answer 17 January 2000]: The cost to the pig sector of the prohibition on sow stalls and tethers introduced through the 1994 Regulations will have included capital costs prior to the prohibition's entry into force on 1 January 1999 as well as ongoing management costs since. These were all covered in a Compliance Cost Assessment which was placed in the Library of the House at the time the Regulations were made: we have not assessed the costs since 1 January 1999.
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The Welfare of Animals at Slaughter Act 1991 does not contain provisions imposing costs on the pig sector.
Mr. Hoyle:
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will seek the introduction of a European ban on stall and tether rearing of pigs and the introduction of standard animal welfare regulations in the European Union. [105029]
Mr. Morley
[holding answer 17 January 2000]: We shall continue to press the EU Commission to bring forward their overdue proposals for updating the existing rules on pig welfare. The Commission's expert Scientific Veterinary Committee--on whose report the Commission's proposals must be based--was published in October 1997 and confirms our view that stalls and tethers for sows are unacceptable.
Mr. Hoyle:
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will ban the import from the EU of pork reared in stalls and tethers. [105028]
Mr. Morley
[holding answer 17 January 2000]: Under the Treaty of Rome it is illegal to ban imports of meat on animal welfare grounds. We are actively seeking to improve welfare standards at EU and Council of Europe level.
Mr. Hunter:
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if it is his policy that reforms of the Sugar Protocol and Lome Convention should include measures to provide support for traditional suppliers of cane; and if he will make a statement. [105493]
Mr. Foulkes:
I have been asked to reply.
Negotiations on a successor to the Lome Convention between the European Union and the 71 African, Caribbean and Pacific countries are due to conclude next month. We expect the present trade arrangements to be extended during a transition period from 2000 to 2008. After that date, new trade arrangements will enter into force. The Sugar Protocol will roll forward unchanged but will be reviewed before the end of the transition period. We would assess the need for support measures at the time of, and within the context of, the Review of the Sugar Protocol. We recognise the importance of the sugar trade to the economies of many ACP States, and our Department has commissioned research work to consider the consequences of possible reforms of the Sugar Protocol. The work is at an early stage, but it clearly indicates that some countries will face adjustment problems. In the time up to the Review it remains vitally important that the ACP continue their own efforts to improve their competitiveness.
Mr. Bercow:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on progress made by the European Commission's Committee of Experts on transport costs. [105608]
Mr. Hill:
I have been asked to reply.
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