Paul Connaughton Snr (Galway East, Fine Gael)

I wish to make a few fundamental points on the World Trade Organisation talks. The issue has been rumbling through here and through Europe for many years and it has many aspects. It is now reaching a crucial stage. In June 2007, in order to kick-start the process of trying to get agreement again, four major trading blocs met with representatives from the European Union, the United States, Brazil and India. They came together as the important partners in the process. I fully support the stance of our agriculture spokesman, Deputy Creed, that everything that can be done to back the Government and the Minister from this side of the House will be done provided that she delivers. In the company I mentioned, she is a very small player. When this decision will be finally made, she will not even be a member of the audience — it will be that far removed from us.

It is against that background that we have made our peace within the European Union at great sacrifice to every farmer not alone in Ireland, but right across Europe. Once that "Green Box" was closed up to 2013 and several other aspects agreed, that was to be our negotiating level. In other words, that was what the European Union claimed we would need to do to come into line with the requirements of the World Trade Organisation. We did that at tremendous sacrifice to every farmer in Europe, not only in Ireland. We then had the great misfortune to be represented by Commissioner Mandelson. I regard the Commissioner as a fox in charge of the hen house. I have no respect for him because he has a contrary view of what rural development is all about not only in Ireland, but throughout the European Union.

Regardless of how we manage it, we need to start at Heads of Government level. We would need to be like red flies, as they say — we should be all over the world at this stage. We should speak to the Director General of the World Trade Organisation, Pascal Lamy, to ensure he understands that our interests are the interests genuinely held across Europe and not the ones enunciated by Commissioner Mandelson if he decides to go on a solo run. It has all the signs of it at every announcement that Commissioner Mandelson makes. He is a product of the old British rule that believed food could not come cheap enough. In other words, no matter how we get it and where it is produced and under what circumstances, it should be given to us cheap and we will take it. We all know that in this country because of the rules we have for food, it is as near to organic production as can be found. The problem in more recent years has been that farmers were losing money in production.

I do not believe those talks will conclude this year because of the American presidential election. However, when they do, I hope that Commissioner Mandelson's views will be sidelined. Ultimately, we in this country should be given the opportunity to be paid for the product that is grown on every acre of Irish land. The IFA did very well to stop the Brazilian imports. We should ensure that unless imports are of the same standard as we produce in the European Union they may not come in and if they do it should be at a significant price. I hope the Taoiseach will take this matter extremely seriously and that the Government jet will not stay on the ground this summer, but will fly all around Europe and America to ensure our views on this important issue are known.

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