Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 17 February 2004
223 Mr. Gormley asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if he will call for a review, under the auspices of the ACP-EU Council of Ministers, of CAP reform and its effects on ACP agriculture; and if he will seek for agricultural trade issues to be addressed as an integral part of the ACP-EU economic partnership agreement negotiations. [4725/04]
View answerThe Council of Agriculture Ministers is acutely aware of the needs of developing countries and of the implications for them of policy decisions taken at EU level. I am satisfied that the recent reform of the CAP will be of benefit to developing countries, including ACP countries. Decoupled payments will replace production-related supports, thereby reducing the potential distortion impact of production-related supports.
Trade with ACP countries is governed by the terms of the ACP-EU partnership which was signed in Cotonou in June 2000 under which the EU grants non-reciprocal trade preferences to imports from ACP countries. In September 2002, the ACP countries and the EU officially launched negotiations on a series of economic partnership agreements which will replace the existing arrangements with reciprocal agreements that are WTO compatible and which will retain an element of differential treatment for the ACP countries. The economic partnership agreements will cover trade in agricultural products. The current preferential trade regime has been extended pending completion of the negotiations.
225 Mr. Gormley asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if he will insist on moving away from the ideological position that new forms of support are non-trade distorting to a recognition that new forms of support have an impact on production and trade, the precise impact of which on developing countries will need to be assessed on a case by case basis. [4727/04]
View answerThe reform of the Common Agriculture Policy as agreed last year in Luxembourg has resulted in a continuation of the move from product support to producer support. The key for Ireland, due to my decision to go for full decoupling at the earliest date, is that the single farm payment will no longer be linked to the production of individual agricultural commodities. This complies with the criteria for the green box as set down by the World Trade Organisation.
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development uses the term "non or minimally trade distorting" for the range of policies which do not have any significant impact upon production and I believe that this term applies to the decoupled payment regime now being established for Irish agriculture.
The recent reform of the CAP will be of benefit to developing countries as decoupled payments will replace production related supports, thereby reducing their impact and potential to distort trade and markets.
