asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what steps he is taking to ensure that, in accordance with the views expressed in the Plowden Committee Report on the Control of Public Expenditure, farm grants and subsidies in England and Wales are allocated where they are most needed.

These grants and subsidies are reviewed each year, and are designed to meet the needs of agriculture and of the economy as a whole by encouraging the industry to improve its capacity to produce as efficiently and economically as possible.