Vol. 481 No. 1
37 Mr. Callely asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food his input into all decisions in relation to intervention beef; his views on the current situation; if he will give details of the issues of concern which have been brought to his attention; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15405/97]
Decisions on the operation of the beef intervention system are taken by the EU Commission in the context of the beef management committee on which all member states, including Ireland are represented.
The issues which have been brought to my attention in relation to intervention relate in the main to the need for an effective intervention system, on the one hand, and the costs on the beef industry arising from the controls enshrined in EU regulations.
As far as the effectiveness of the intervention system is concerned, I believe that the recent decision of the beef management committee to retain (a) the maximum carcase weight limit at 360 kg and (b) eligibility of steer grade O4s for the next quarter will ensure that an effective intervention system will be available for the beef sector for the remainder of the year.
With regard to the controls on intervention, the position is that these controls have been substantially strengthened in recent years.
