Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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The negotiations on a new WTO agreement were launched at Doha in November 2001. While significant progress has been made towards concluding an agreement, most notably in the Framework Agreement which was reached in Geneva in August 2004 and at the WTO Ministerial Conference in Hong Kong in December 2005, final agreement has not yet been reached. The negotiations resumed fully in January 2007 following a breakdown in July 2006.

In June 2007, a meeting of the G4 group of major negotiating partners (India, US, Brazil and EU) ended without significant agreement and this was seen a major setback in efforts to reach a successful conclusion to the Round. Following this the focus of negotiations has returned to the multilateral process in Geneva. These negotiations are on-going at present and the efforts to achieve progress will continue over the coming months.

I remain committed to an ambitious and balanced outcome to the negotiations. As an open economy dependent on trade Ireland has much to gain from a successful deal. However, I am determined that agriculture must not be sacrificed for the sake of an overall agreement and that, in accordance with the agreed EU negotiating mandate, a new WTO agreement will not necessitate further reform of the CAP. The EU has undertaken CAP reform in preparation for the negotiations and I believe that it has already made a generous offer to reduce trade distorting subsidies and to provide substantial Special and Differential Treatment for developing countries.

I have consistently outlined my position in the clearest possible terms in the Council of Agriculture Ministers, most recently on 26 September, and I have emphasised the absolute necessity that the Commission remain within the terms of the negotiating mandate. I will continue to work closely with like-minded Ministers in other Member States to seek support for my position.