Single Payment Scheme

: The Secretary of State made that point earlier in the week. If there are genuine problems of that kind, they need to be taken into account. Whether or not interim payments are made, there is a strong case for making interest payments on money that rightfully belongs to farmers and not the Government. I hope that the Minister will reconsider the Government's position on that. I want to touch on the question of ministerial accountability and responsibility. We accept that Ministers can work only with the information that they receive, but it is an important part of their job to make sure that the quality of information being provided is sound and accurate. There are no fewer than five former Agricultural Ministers present on the Opposition Benches who will know that that is an important task for any Minister. That is part of the Minister's job. Ministers cannot be absolved from all responsibility when things go wrong. The Secretary of State's remark earlier in the week should go down in the annals of history about ministerial responsibility. In answer to a question asked by my hon. Friend the Member for Mid-Norfolk, she said, ““As for Ministers taking responsibility, I am taking responsibility, which is why I removed the chief executive.”” We Opposition Members are fair-minded people, but I cannot understand how Lord Bach can expect on this issue to command the respect of Parliament or, more importantly, the farming community with whom he must have day-to-day contact. It always seems, with this Government, that when something goes wrong, it is someone else's fault. Lord Bach should consider his position, and if he is not prepared to do that, the Prime Minister should consider it for him.