Willie Penrose (Longford-Westmeath, Labour)
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Question 135: To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food her views on the Mandelson proposals at the World Trade Organisation talks; her further views, in this context, on whether the said proposals, if implemented, would represent a serious attack upon the structure of agriculture here with particular adverse and devastating consequences for the beef industry in so far as there would be a trebling of tonnage of beef being imported into the EU; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11128/08]

Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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I have already said to this House that I am not happy with the current direction of the negotiations, and that important aspects of the latest draft texts from the Chairs of the Agriculture and NAMA (non agricultural market access) committees have done nothing to allay my concerns. I presume these texts are the proposals to which the Deputy is referring. I am deeply concerned with suggestions that the EU should provide further concessions on a range of agricultural issues, including tariff reductions, treatment of sensitive products and related tariff quota expansion. I have a particular concern regarding the potential impact of some of these proposals on the beef sector and I have articulated this clearly at every opportunity. I am also concerned at threats to the Green Box and in turn to EU direct payments to farmers which are classified under the Green Box. At the same time, the text on industrial goods (NAMA) does not provide the foreseen additional market access for EU goods. In my view, this creates an even greater imbalance in the negotiations.

I believe it is time for realism to prevail as to what is attainable and acceptable in regard to agriculture in these negotiations. We must achieve genuine balance in any final agreement and it is critical that the European agri-food sector is not sacrificed for the sake of a deal. This is the position consistently taken by the Irish Government and which has been and will continue to be reflected strongly in a variety of EU and WTO meetings and in our bilateral contacts with the Commission and other EU Member States.