Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 7 November 2017
875. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the bilateral meetings he has had with his European counterparts regarding the concerns of Irish and European beef farmers, who have campaigned for beef not to form part of the potential Mercosur deal. [46235/17]
View answerI was deeply disappointed that the Commission decided to offer a significant tariff rate quota for beef of 70,000 tonnes during the last round of negotiations. I believe that this could not be coming at a worse time for the EU beef sector.
I and my officials have been very active in highlighting the potentially very damaging impact of a Mercosur deal on the European agriculture sector, and on the beef sector in particular. We continue to monitor the situation closely and respond as appropriate to developments in order to defend the interests of Irish farmers, working in close co-operation with my Government colleagues, particularly the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, and the Taoiseach.
At political level, I have raised the issue with Member State colleagues including the French Minister for Agriculture, Stephane Travert, and with Commissioners Hogan and Malmström.
Most recently Ireland intervened in the latest of a series of very strong interventions on this matter at the Trade Policy Committee in Brussels on 27 October. I also raised the matter at the Council of Agriculture Ministers in Luxembourg in October and again in Brussels this week. I have worked very closely with a number of other Member States, most notably France, including the production of a joint paper that was submitted to the European Commission on 26 September outlining our shared concerns. I also wrote to Commissioner Malmström in early October reiterating my concerns in relation to the tabling of a beef tariff rate quota offer by the EU during the most recent round of negotiations.
I believe there is a need for continued vigilance in relation to the conduct of these trade negotiations, and I will continue to insist that they are handled appropriately, and in a manner that safeguards the interests of the Irish and European beef sector. In this regard I believe full account must be taken of the findings of the Commission’s own assessment of the cumulative impact of trade deals on the agri food sector, and the potentially very damaging impact of Brexit on an already delicately balanced EU beef market.
