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Dept for Environment Food and Rural Affairs

Statement on what the outcome was of the Agriculture and Fisheries Council on 14th March; what the Government's stance was on the issues discussed, including its voting record; and if she will make a statement.

Asked by

Jim Hood (Labour)

Answering body

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Tabled on

14 March 2005

For answer on

22 March 2005

Answered on

22 March 2005

Mr. Hood: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the outcome was of the Agriculture and Fisheries Council on 14 March; what the Government's stance was on the issues discussed, including its voting record; and if she will make a statement. [222546] Margaret Beckett: My hon. Friend, the Parliamentary Secretary, and I represented the United Kingdom at the meeting of the Agriculture and Fisheries Council in Brussels on 14 March 2005. Ministers responsible for fisheries and agriculture in Northern Ireland and Scotland were also present. The Council agreed a proposal concerning establishment of an EU Fisheries Control Agency, which the European Council had previously agreed to sit in Spain. We were able to support a compromise proposal for commission representation on the Agency's administrative board. The Commission reported progress in negotiations with the Russian Federation to agree certain plant and animal health controls. While the UK has not so far been among the member states most affected by Russian requirements, it was encouraging that progress was being made to resolve the remaining differences. The main item for discussion at this Council was Rural Development. The presidency focused discussion on a small number of issues in the current proposal to revise the Rural Development Regulation, principally focussing on the LEADER reserve and inviting comments on the Rural Development Strategy which it is planned to table in June. I reiterated the importance we attach to devoting at least half of the financial resources under the Regulation to environmental work, expressed some doubt as to the level of the LEADER reserve proposed and supported others in giving a general welcome to the likely shape of the strategy framework. The Commission presented a progress report on implementation of the EU forestry strategy. Member states took note. The Commission also presented proposals for EU measures to address market crises through new risk management techniques in the industry. This was a brief presentation, with substantial discussion planned for later in the year. The Commission made it clear that it opposed extending any kind of generalised safety net provision such as that found in the current beef regime. It also indicated that the use of any modulated funds would only be possible in the context of rural development programmes and measures that were compatible with the WTO Green Box. Under Any Other Business, we raised the question of cetacean by catches and the need for greater protection of dolphins. The Commission undertook to call for international research on the subject to be accelerated. Portugal drew attention to the difficulties that prolonged drought had caused in its rural areas. Over lunch, the Commission updated Ministers on the WTO agriculture negotiations. I welcomed recent progress and reminded the Council of the importance of making progress in good time for the Hong Kong Ministerial in December.

Date

22 March 2005

Reference

432 c636-7W; 222546

House

House of Commons

Dept for International Development

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development:(1)what assessment he has made of the level of continuing need for aid and assistance in Grenada following Hurricane Ivan; and if he will make a statement;(2)what assessment he has made of the impact on the (a)tourist industry and (b)economy of Grenada...

Asked by

John Austin (Labour)

Answering body

Department for International Development

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

Tabled on

9 February 2005

For answer on

21 February 2005

Answered on

21 February 2005

John Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development (1) what assessment he has made of the level of continuing need for aid and assistance in Grenada following Hurricane Ivan; and if he will make a statement; [216601] (2) what assessment he has made of the impact on the (a) tourist industry and (b) economy of Grenada of Hurricane Ivan; and if he will make a statement; [216603] (3) what assistance is being given to Grenada to diversify its agricultural production; and if he will make a statement; [216606] (4) what assessment he has made of the impact of Hurricane Ivan on agriculture in Grenada, with particular reference to (a) nutmeg and (b) cocoa; and what assistance is being given towards recovery of these industries; [216604] (5) what assessment he has made of housing need in Grenada following Hurricane Ivan; and what assistance his Department is providing. [216605] Mr. Gareth Thomas: Hurricane Ivan has been a catastrophe for Grenada. Two weeks after the hurricane hit the island, the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) and the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) undertook a macro-socio-economic assessment of the damage caused. This assessed that 90 per cent. of housing stock was either destroyed or damaged, and around 30 per cent. of the population made homeless. The OECS/ ECLAC assessment indicated that the damage to schools, hospitals, businesses and infrastructure was estimated to be in the region of £500 million, or twice Grenada's Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Grenada had been recording impressive growth rates in recent years and was expected to grow by 5.7 per cent. in 2004. With significant losses to the main productive sectors of agriculture and tourism caused by the hurricane, the economy is now expected to have contracted by 1.4 per cent. in 2004. Some 90 per cent. of hotel rooms on the island were affected by the hurricane. A staff mission from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) will provide a further update on the post-Ivan macro-economic situation and the prospects for economic recovery at a donor briefing meeting in Barbados at the end of February 2005. Unemployment has increased with an estimated 40,000 jobs directly affected by the hurricane. However, as the physical reconstruction of buildings and infrastructure gets under way, it is anticipated that unemployment levels will start to decline. The devastation to the agricultural sector caused by Hurricane Ivan was particularly severe: 95 per cent. of nutmeg trees--Grenada's principal export commodity-- were uprooted. Regrowth and recovery of the nutmeg industry will take an estimated 7-10 years. Grenada can, however, continue to export its reserve stocks for the next three years. This should help to cushion the impact of the loss of the trees on the economy. Cocoa was also affected, albeit, to a much lesser extent. 30 per cent. of the crop will need to be replanted, and it is expected that 50-70 per cent. of the harvest for next year will be available. At the 19 November donor conference on Grenada, the IMF announced that for the calendar year of 2004, donor contributions would fill the £21 million gap in Grenada's finances. At that time, the IMF anticipated that a financing gap of £4.2 million remained for 2005, which would widen in 2006 to £19.2 million. The IMF currently has a team in Grenada to undertake a fuller assessment of financing needs in 2005 and 2006. The IMF team will brief DFID officials and other development partners on their findings at a meeting in Barbados on 23 February 2005. One of the key financial challenges for the Government of Grenada is a high debt burden. We are working with the United States Agency for International Development, to provide a team of debt advisers to help the Government of Grenada to restructure its total stock of debt. Despite the unprecedented scale of the damage to the agricultural sector, the Grenadian Government has identified significant potential to restructure and transform the sector with support from the private sector. DFID is currently funding an evaluation of the direct and indirect effects of Hurricane Ivan on the forestry sector in Grenada as the basis for determining the interventions needed to rehabilitate and reconstruct the forestry sector. The study will implement a detailed assessment of the key damage to forestation on the island, and prioritise activities to ensure that work is urgently undertaken to prevent landslides and provide protection to the water table. Under the United Nations Flash Appeal for Grenada, the UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation, appealed for some £2.21 million to support agriculture. £1.4 million has so far been committed and assistance has been provided to rehabilitate the cocoa crop and to assist the Government in its development of a strategy for nutmeg production. The Grenada Board of Tourism now reports 50 per cent. of hotel rooms on the island are back in operation, and predicts that the figure will be 80 per cent. by the end of December 2005. The rehabilitation has been mainly funded by private insurance and the private sector. Reconstruction of the housing sector is a Government of Grenada priority, and is underway. Insurance payments are being made to those eligible, and the raw materials needed are being imported. For priority vulnerable and needy families, the Government of Grenada has committed itself to constructing 225 low-income homes between November 2004 and February 2005 at a cost of about £8,000 per home, and providing material assistance for the repair of 1,125 roofs during the same period. The Government are also offering a Soft Loan Facility that provides a maximum loan amount of approximately £8,000 for 10 years with a one year grace period, at an interest rate of 3 per cent. A training and a public information programme on construction tips are also on-going, with model houses displaying appropriate building techniques being driven around the island. Over a longer timeframe, the Government of Grenada has set a target to construct 10,000 low-income homes under a phased programme over the next five years. In addition, the Venezuelan Government has committed to the construction of 130 homes in the Parish of St. David's; the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to constructing 200 houses and repairing a further 1,500 houses by the end of 2005; and the People's Republic of China has also undertaken to provide 2,000 low-cost homes. A number of NGOs are seeking to provide low-cost, quickly constructed homes. DFID's micro finance project in Grenada has developed a new facility for small housing loans. The European Commission are considering how their micro finance programme might provide similar support. 1 Conversion US$ to GBP = 1.8

Date

21 February 2005

Reference

431 c376-8W;431 c377-9W; 216601;216603;216606;216604;216605

House

House of Commons

Plant Health (Phytophthora Kernovii Management Zone) (England) Order 2004

SI 2004/3367 (Negative instrument). Coming into force 21 December 2004.

Department

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Type

Statutory instruments

Date

20 December 2004

Reference

SI 2004/3367

House

House of Commons; House of Lords

Plant Health (Forestry) (Phytophthora Ramorum) (Great Britain) Order 2004

SI 2004/3213 (Negative instrument). Coming into force 29 December 2004.

Department

Forestry Commission

Type

Statutory instruments

Date

8 December 2004

Reference

SI 2004/3213

House

House of Commons; House of Lords

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