Minister of State Jim Paice faced the farming press at a media briefing at the Dairy Event and Livestock Show 2010 today.
Questions about TB and spending cuts were mostly batted away, but the minister did make clear that "all aspects of Defra's spending is under intense scrutiny”. On the establishment of a new independent body for animal health, he added: “We await the conclusions of Rosemary Radcliffe's group and then we will discuss where we will go."
On TB, Mr Paice said he hoped to be in a position to make a statement in the next few weeks about taking forward the pledges in the coalition document. “I’m hoping to say a lot more in the not so distant future,” he said.
He admitted it was frustrating not be able to be drawn into details on contentious topics but said that after years of commenting he was delighted to be in the job.
He also talked about the ongoing policy work on sustainability and the future of the CAP after 2013.
On the current red tape consultation led by former NFU Director General, Richard Macdonald, Mr Paice said: "It's going well and we have had a tremendous response from the industry. The implementation and enforcement of regulations rather than the regulations themselves, this is key to our approach."
The future of the RPA and the CAP were also discussed: "I can't predict what will happen to the RPA post 2013 but I don't see dramatic structural changes in the short term. For CAP post-2013 we've no doubt there will be direct payments but we do believe Pillar Two payments for public goods are important for the environment but we are keen to use Access One to enable the industry to be more competitive."
No comments have been made.