Vol. 475 No. 8
24 Mr. S. Brennan asked the Minister for Tourism and Trade the action, if any, he has taken over the past two years to remove the barriers to trade which still exist within the EU in spite of the creation of the single market and the completion of GATT worldwide; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5997/97]
The IBEC survey on barriers to trade, which was carried out in 1995 at my request to determine if the single market was working for Irish companies, found that one-third of respondent exporters had experienced difficulties in gaining access to other EU markets. IBEC was subsequently requested to further analyse the survey results to ascertain the nature of the problems concerned, to enable my Department to pursue these problems with EU Commission and other member states concerned.
In late November 1995 IBEC confirmed that almost all cases of difficulties reported by Irish exporters had been successfully resolved. Efforts were still being made to settle the small number of unresolved cases and, if these proved unsuccessful, the assistance of my Department would be sought. Because of the progress made through other channels, the need for representations to the EU Commission and other member states regarding difficulties experienced by Irish exporters in EU markets has not arisen to date.
On 26 November last during the Irish Presidency of the European Union, I chaired an open debate on the European Commission's review of the impact and effectiveness of the single market following a presentation by the Commission of the review to council. The review, which confirms that the single market has contributed to increased levels of income and employment, also highlights the need for further action to be taken to ensure that single market legislation is correctly applied and effectively enforced throughout the European Union. The Dublin European Council subsequently noted the Commission's intention to present to the European Council in Amsterdam an action plan and a timetable covering all necessary measures that must be taken to ensure that the full potential benefit of the internal market is achieved before the beginning of stage 3 of European Monetary Union.
