Vol. 559 No. 2
54 Mr. Rabbitte asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food the content and conclusions of his recent meeting in Dublin with the EU Agriculture Commissioner, Dr. Franz Fischler; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25747/02]
Commissioner Fischler visited Dublin on 11 November as part of a programme of visits to member states to discuss with me his proposals on the Mid-term Review of Agenda 2000 and to have an exchange of views on them with farming groups and other interests.
During the visit, the Commissioner and I had a constructive and useful exchange of views on the Commission's proposals for the Mid-term Review of the Common Agricultural Policy, the outlook for the EU enlargement negotiations, the negotiation of the new WTO round and the beef export market situation.
The Commissioner clarified, and elaborated on, various aspects of the Commission's mid-term review proposals and current thinking. The Commissioner indicated that the decisions of the Brussels European Council on 24-25 October would allow the enlargement negotiations to be concluded at the European Council Meeting in Copenhagen in December. The Commissioner indicated that he would proceed with the mid-term review with the possible exception of the proposal for modulation of direct payments and that detailed proposals would be presented by the Commission early in 2003. He believed such proposals were necessary, particularly in view of the WTO negotiations on the new round. I took the opportunity to impress upon Commissioner Fischler the particular Irish concerns in relation to current developments and in particular the impact of the mid-term review proposals.
