Dáil Éireann debate -
Thursday, 26 Apr 1990

Vol. 397 No. 10

Written Answers. - EC Council of Ministers Meeting.

Proinsias De Rossa

Question:

34 Proinsias De Rossa asked the Minister for the Environment the matters which were discussed and the conclusions which were reached at the EC Council of Ministers' meeting on 21 and 22 April 1990; and if he will make a statement on the matter.

Minister for the Environment (Mr. Flynn)

The informal meeting of Environment Ministers which I hosted last weekend considered two important themes, the environment and the Single Market, and EC relations with Eastern and Central Europe and with EFTA.

The discussion on Eastern Europe laid the groundwork for a special meeting of EC Environment Ministers and their counterparts from certain Central and Eastern European countries which is to be held in Dublin on 16 June and which will consider the possibilities for action in relation to the serious environmental situation in Central and Eastern Europe.

The discussion on the environment and the Single Market centered on five broad themes — border controls and environmental standards; integration of environmental considerations into policy making; problems of peripheral regions; and the use of economic and fiscal instruments for environmental protection.

I have arranged to have copies of the Presidency Conclusions placed in the Library.