Cereals (Co-responsibility Levy)

Part of the debate – in the House of Commons at 8:01 pm on 5 November 1986.

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Photo of Mr Robert Maclennan Mr Robert Maclennan , Caithness and Sutherland 8:01, 5 November 1986

It is a pleasure to follow the hon. Member for Devizes (Mr. Morrison) because I very much agree with his view on a long-term solution. I am happy to forestall the intervention from the hon. Member for Southend, East (Mr. Taylor), "What would you do?", by saying so. The proposals described by the hon. Member for Devizes were advanced in a White Paper published by the Social Democratic party in December 1985, and were also advanced by alliance spokesmen in the debate last January. So our proposals providing an alternative means of dealing with the endemic problem of surplus cereals within the Community have been well worked out.

I should like to welcome the Minister to his new office. His performance tonight has been amiable. However, it left more questions in our minds than it gave answers, which is becoming a pattern with Ministers who speak for the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food. They say that they want to hear what the House has to say, but they go away and do almost the opposite of what the House said should be done.

The origins of this fiasco should be laid not at the door of the Minister, but at that of his superior whose absence tonight is quite understood. However, the Minister cannot escape blame for the imbroglio into which he has plunged almost all sectors of agriculture by his actions.

The Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food described the needs of the cereals industry in a speech that he made in Berlin in January of this year. He set out his philosophy quite clearly in that speech by saying that he rejected the quota approach. In fact, he said that he favoured a free market approach. His actual words were: The alternative to the quotas is to expose the industry to more market forces. Whatever the Minister has achieved since January, it cannot be said that he has exposed the industry to more market forces. He has introduced a form of penalty which is more damaging than a simple price cut. Indeed, it has no benefits for consumers or producers and few for taxpayers.