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Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Tuesday, 9 Jun 1998

Vol. 492 No. 1

Written Answers. - Common Agricultural Policy.

Bernard J. Durkan

Ceist:

28 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food whether he can report progress on discussions with his EU colleagues in relation to price supports for agriculture in the context of Agenda 2000; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13484/98]

Proinsias De Rossa

Ceist:

29 Proinsias De Rossa asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if he will make a statement on the position of the negotiations on proposals from the EU Commission for reform of the Common Agricultural Policy. [13382/98]

I propose to take Questions Nos. 28 and 29 together.

The Commission's detailed proposals for the reform of the Common Agricultural Policy were published on 18 March 1998. A special meeting of the Council of Ministers was convened on 31 March 1998 to enable Ministers to put forward their initial responses to the proposals. At that meeting, I informed the Commissioner and my colleagues in the Council of the economic significance of the Irish interests that would be affected by the proposals and told them that the proposals were seriously damaging to Irish agriculture and the Irish economy and that, consequently, Ireland rejected them in their present form.

A preliminary technical examination of the proposals has been carried out in Council working groups and in the Special Committee on Agriculture over the past two months, where Ireland's concerns were set out. The proposals were again discussed at a meeting of the Council of Ministers on 25-26 May, when a progress report was prepared for the European Council in Cardiff on 15-16 June. That report included, at my request, an acknowledgement that the dependence of particular member states on specific sectors would be taken into account and a recognition by the Council of the need to avoid renationalisation of the CAP and distortion of competition while simplifying it and further decentralising its implementation.

As I indicated to this House on 23 April, I will continue to put Ireland's case forcefully to my ministerial colleagues and to the EU Commissioner for Agriculture both in the Council and bilaterally. It is my objective to obtain a final agreement which not only will not disadvantage Ireland but will provide a favourable framework within which the Irish agriculture and food industries can continue to develop for the benefit of those who work in those industries and for the economy as a whole.
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