asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food the number of farmers who are entitled to have 60 per cent of their original milk gallonage restored to them according to the Council of Agriculture Ministers' interpretation of the Mulder judgment in January 1989; the efforts he is making to have the full quota, less deductions already made on a community basis since 1 April 1984, restored, without restriction to all dairy farmers who opted for the conversion or non-marketing schemes without deducting from existing quota holders; and whether this approach is in the national interest.
Written Answers. - Milk Quotas.
47.
The number of Irish farmers whose non-marketing period expired after the "cut-off" date of 1 October 1983 is about 2,400. Some of these may however be excluded under the other criteria laid down by the Council of Ministers. I sought throughout the negotiations leading up to the decision of the Council of Ministers to have quotas for these farmers fixed at as high a percentage as possible of their previous deliveries. It was because of pressure from me and from one or two colleagues that the figure of 60 per cent was agreed and that the cut-off date was brought back from 1 January 1984 to 1 October 1983. I do not see any prospect of having either of those decisions changed in the council. It is, of course, in the national interest to have the milk quotas available to Irish producers increased so long as the corresponding increase throughout the Community is not so high as to put market stability in jeopardy.