To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what her estimate is of her Department's spending on support for hill farming, in each year from 1990–91 in (a) cash and (b) real terms; what value for money is obtained by this spending; what the purpose is of this spending; and if she will make a statement. [105081]
Hill Livestock Compensatory Allowance (HLCA) spending in the UK from 1990–91 was as follows:
| £ million | ||
| Year | Cash | Real terms |
| 1990 | 128.5 | 179.6 |
| 1991 | 147.1 | 194.1 |
| 1992 | 152.7 | 194.3 |
| 1993 | 132.4 | 165.8 |
| 1994 | 110.0 | 134.5 |
| 1995 | 107.6 | 127.2 |
| 1996 | 107.1 | 123.6 |
| 1997 | 167.6 | 187.5 |
| 1998 | 110.5 | 119.6 |
| 1999 | 175.8 | 187.3 |
| 2000 | 172.4 | 178.4 |
Note:
Expenditure in real terms at 2002 prices.
From 2001, support for hill farming became the responsibility of the devolved administrations. In England, spending on the Hill Farm Allowance (HFA), which replaced HLCA, was as follows:
£ million
| ||
Year
| Cash
| Real terms
|
| 2001 | 42.5 | 43.2 |
| 2002 | 39.0 | 39.0 |
The objectives of HLCA were to help support the continuation of extensive livestock farming in the hills and uplands—the less favoured areas—thereby helping to maintain aviable population and conserve the countryside. HLCA was replaced by HFA and similarschemes in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. The objectives of HFA are tocontribute to the maintenance of the social fabric in upland communities through support for continued agricultural land use and to help to preserve the farmed upland environment by ensuring that land in these naturally disadvantaged areas is managed in a sustainable way.
In terms of value for money, support for extensive grazing has played an important role in maintaining our traditional upland landscapes and hill farming communities. We are keen to ensure that support for extensive farming in the LFAs is as effective as possible, and plan shortly to consult publicly on a review of the Hill Farm Allowance to see whether improvements might usefully be made.