(Limerick West) asked the Minister for Agriculture the steps he is taking to ensure that the necessary market supports are implemented quickly so that the current crisis in the Irish beef industry may be speedily resolved.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Beef Industry.
10.
In response to sustained pressure on my part, measures were taken recently by the EC Commission to support the market and these have had the effect of raising the market price of slaughter cattle. I think that is what I was saying in reply to the previous question.
(Limerick West): Is the Minister aware that the effect that he intended has not taken place with regard to the introduction of aids to private storage? Is he happy that the intervention that has been introduced has solved the crisis in the beef industry? It is a crisis, as has already been outlined today. Would full intervention have solved our problem to a far greater effect than the APS and partial intervention?
Yes, of course full intervention would have improved our marketing situation, but for two reasons this was not allowed by the EC Commission. (1) The cost to the Commission would have been prohibitive in their view, because you cannot have selective intervention. It must apply to the whole EC and very large sums of money would be involved. (2) We offered to subtract any intervention that we might get at this time of the year from what we would normally get in the autumn, but they would not agree to that because of the cost of bringing it in at the moment and they were not happy that they could cut back in the autumn.
I am sure, and the statistics prove, that the aids to private storage scheme has been a big help. Remember that increased refunds for live cattle were introduced previous to the aids for private storage. I will give a run down on that. Late in March the export refunds for cattle were increased by £45 a head and then in April we had the aids to private storage which was worth an extra £330 a tonne and, as I said yesterday, that gave a price increase in beef of approximately 5p a lb., maybe a little more, because the price was as low as 102p and now it is as high as 109p or 110p per lb.
(Limerick West): Would the Minister not agree that the aids to private storage scheme is applicable more or less only to exports of beef to third countries? Further, is he aware that at this time of the year exports to third countries are way down?
Yes, nevertheless it took 15,000 tonnes of beef. That was the target and it was taken into private storage and that has relieved pressure on producers who were holding on to cattle. Let me point out that from next Monday intervention will be changing from hindquarters to forequarters and that again will give a fairly considerable boost to the cattle trade.