Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 1 July 2008
86 Deputy Bernard Allen asked the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food the approach he will take to negotiations surrounding the changes to milk quotas under CAP health check proposals; the way the dairy sector can be best supported going forward; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25605/08]
View answerThe Commission proposals in the milk sector cover the full range of market management measures currently in place. While milk quota expansion is at the forefront of these proposals, considerable changes to other market management measures are also proposed. These include the abolition of private storage aid for cheese and the disposal aid for butter used in the manufacture of pastry and ice cream and for direct consumption. The Commission has also proposed making optional rather than obligatory as at present, the private storage aid for butter, casein aid and the skimmed milk powder feeding stuff scheme. In addition, the Commission has proposed to change the current intervention schemes, which guarantee the purchase of up to 30,000 tonnes of butter and 109,000 tonnes of skimmed milk powder when intervention is open in Member States, to a tender only scheme. On quotas, the Commission has proposed to increase national quotas by 1% per annum from 2009/10 to 2013/14 and to allow quotas to expire in 2015.
My approach in these negotiations will be to ensure a ‘soft landing' towards the eventual abolition of quotas in 2015. The Health Check provides Irish and EU dairy farmers with a new opportunity to respond to increased global demand. However, the proposals currently on the table, in my view, do not meet the expectations of Irish milk producers in meeting the demands of international dairy markets. A gradual increase in quotas is the most sensible and logical way to achieve this but we will need to be more ambitious in the annual adjustments of quota volumes. I will be asking the Commission to bring forward more ambitious quota expansion proposals in these negotiations and moreover, I want to keep the existing market management measures in place to cater for any price volatility that may occur during the transition period.
