WILLIAMS QUESTIONS SECRETARY OF STATE OVER LACK OF UK REPRESENTATION AT EU AGRICULTURE MEETING

12.20.47pm GMT Thu 10th Dec 2009

Roger Williams, MP for Brecon and Radnorshire and Liberal Democrat Food and Rural Affairs spokesperson, used today's Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Oral Question session to challenge the Secretary of State over the lack of ministerial representation at today's meeting of EU Agriculture Ministers in Paris.

Roger Williams said:

"22 EU Agriculture Ministers are meeting today in Paris to discuss the future of the Common Agricultural Policy, yet the UK Government has been unable to send a Minister, merely an advisor.

"If DEFRA is serious about representing British Agriculture at a European level then it is essential that Ministers make themselves available for these meetings.

"While I appreciate the Secretary of State saying that the Government supports a future Common Agricultural Policy that gradually moves towards Pillar II it is hard to see how they plan to achieve this if they can't make themselves available for summits such as the one taking place in Paris today."