Minister hails savings forfarmers from cutting red tape - farmers weekly
- Select a language for the TTS:
- UK English Female
- UK English Male
- US English Female
- US English Male
- Australian Female
- Australian Male
- Language selected: (auto detect) - EN
Play all audios:
05 June 1998 Minister hails savings for farmers from cutting red tape _ BY BRIAN BRADY, PRESS ASSOCIATION_ HARD-pressed farmers have been saved millions, thanks to changes to official forms,
junior agriculture minister Elliot Morley told the Commons yesterday. He said alterations, including the use of pre-printed addresses and barcodes, had saved farmers £5.4 million, with a
further £1.1 million savings expected in the coming year. He added that most of the forms related to EU subsidy applications. Tory Michael Fabricant (Lichfield) asked at question time what
the Government was doing to relieve the burden of forms to be filled in by farmers already hit by falling incomes and rising interest rates. Mr Morley replied: “What we have done is
introduced changes which so far have saved £5.4 million in reduction in time filling in forms, with a further £1.1 million to be found this coming year, in relation to rationalising forms,
pre-printing names and addresses, introducing bar-codes and trying to minimise the cost and the burdens on farmers.” Barry Sheerman (Lab Huddersfield) claimed many of the forms confronting
farmers had been introduced by the previous Tory Government. He added: “No one minds in the farming community filling in forms if they are for a purpose, and that purpose surely must be
helping the small and medium farmer to make a good living.”