MEMORANDUM SUBMITTED BY THE DIRECTOR,
MIDLAND PIG PRODUCERS (V20)
I have no doubt that you are well aware of the
parlous state of British Agriculture in general but intensive
livestock farming in particular. I shall not therefore bore you
with details of the financial disaster of the past two years.
The charges being suggested by the Environment
Agency are so immense that they are difficult to contemplate.
Please could someone at the Ministry please
explain the following:
(a) Why the EA charge out their staff at
£600 per day?
(b) What will they do on the average 400-sow
unit for 20 man-days?
(c) Why will it cost £6,000 for the
annual renewal of the permit?
This is what I would like to know before coming
to any hasty conclusions.
I understand that government in other Member
States will absorb these costs; this will once more adversely
affect our competitiveness.
The proposed costs of the first registration
of £18,000 will drive even more pig farmers out of business.
This does not take into account any costs imposed in compliance
with the new regulation. These costs are difficult to assess without
more detailed information.
Sectoral guidelines are not yet available; and
as I understand it they will not be available for at least 18
months. This means we are very much in the dark and being asked
to make serious observations about a game where the goal posts
have not yet arrived on site!!
Climate Change Levy, yet another cost that will
further erode our competitive edge. I believe this tax is meant
to be neutral because of the link with NI charges. I cannot see
this working in agriculture as we are extremely labour efficient
and any pay-back would be unlikely to compensate us for extra
energy costs.
This industry is unable to absorb any new costs,
not now or for the foreseeable future. Any observer will have
noted, that pig production in this Country is in financial melt-down
due to two years of solid losses. My Company will have lost in
the region of £3 million by the end of this financial year
(31 January 2000). Even the stout hearted who manage to see this
crisis through are going to be left with the enormous task of
repaying bank loans and overdrafts, the like of which they have
never seen before. This when coupled with catching up on repairs
and renewals that had to be shelved during the crisis will take
three to four years to put right at best.
The message is a simple one; if this country
is to have a viable pig production industry then great thought
should be applied to helping us to reduce the costs that are already
crippling us eg offal disposal and abattoir deductions. But for
gods sake, please, no more added costs.
11 January 2000
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