| Wednesday, 09 February 2005 | |
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DEFRA Minister visits Southfleet to meet local farmers and producers The DEFRA Minister, Ben Bradshaw MP, visited Hook Place Farm in Southfleet yesterday to meet local farmers, producers and NFU officials. The Minister, who has responsibility for Biodiversity, Organic Farming and Nature Conservation, was also joined at the meeting by Dartford MP, Dr Howard Stoate and the Chair of Southfleet Parish Council, Cllr Noreen Salway. “It was a very constructive meeting. I think the farmers present welcomed the opportunity to speak to a Minister in person about Government Farming policy and also to draw his attention to some of the issues affecting growers and producers in Kent,” said Dr Stoate. Amongst the issues raised at the meeting were agricultural wages, the regulatory framework affecting local growers, the importance of marketing of British produce effectively and the cost of dealing with fly-tipping. The Minister promised to look into a number of the issues which were raised with him. He also brought the farmers up to date with the progress of the Government’s new Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Bill, which will provide Local Authorities with new powers to tackle fly-tipping including the ability to recover their investigation and clear-up costs from perpetrators. |
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© 2008 Dr Howard Stoate - Member of Parliament for Dartford
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