Memorandum submitted by the Home-Grown
Cereals Authority (Appendix 4)
1. The Home-Grown Cereals Authority wishes
to give written evidence to the Environment Food and Rural Affairs
Committee on Chapter 2 of the Bill, Power to Reform Agricultural
etc Bodies.
THE REVIEW
OF LEVY
BODIES
2. HGCA welcomes the proposal by Defra to
review its sponsored agricultural and horticultural levy bodies.
We believe that this review will provide an opportunity to bring
the support which the levy bodies give to the industry into line
with the needs of growers and processors as they are today, following
the great changes which have taken place since the levy bodies
were first established.
THE DRAFT
BILL
3. The draft Bill seems to us to make good
provision to put into effect whatever changes to the levy board
structure Ministers may decide upon following the review. While
any Section 49 or 50 Order that is made to set up a new Board
or Boards will require careful drafting, the Bill and its schedules
provide good signposting for the draftsman to follow in addition
to giving Ministers the necessary powers to implement the measures.
It will be particularly important to have a well structured consultation
process across the industry if and when structural changes to
the current levy bodies are proposed to ensure that all the stakeholders
buy into any new structure.
4. One small area which may need strengthening
in the draft Bill is the definition of Agriculture in Section
50 (4). While the mainstream arable crops (cereals, oilseeds,
potatoes, sugar beet, peas and beans) are not mentioned by name
(although dairy farming another clear part of agriculture is listed
specifically), it might be assumed that no one would ever form
the view that they are not part of agriculture. However, someone
might make a case that biomass crops or other plants grown for
energy production were not agricultural crops, particularly where
tree species were being grown for the purpose. There may also
be an increase in the area of novel crops grown for pharmaceutical
or other high value industrial purposes during the life of the
Act. The Bill should include a "catch all" phrase to
make it clear that the Act, when it becomes one, applies to all
crops grown on a commercial or field scale.
5. The HGCA does not wish to make comment
on any other part of the draft Bill.
Home-Grown Cereals Authority
February 2005
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