Jack Wall (Kildare South, Labour)
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Question 211: To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food his proposals to address the concerns expressed in correspondence (details supplied); the proposed meetings he is seeking to arrange with other EU Agricultural Ministers within the EU to discuss the matter; his proposals to further the efforts to address the matter and to continue the forum of meetings with the EU Commission and its Commissioners; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18975/08]

Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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There is no doubt that the current round of WTO negotiations represents a significant challenge for EU and Irish agriculture.

I am very concerned about some of the proposals being made in the WTO negotiations and with the lack of balance in the process. I want to assure the Deputy that I will take every opportunity to express my concerns in the strongest terms in the various EU and WTO meetings dealing with these negotiations. Only last week I met my French counterpart in Dublin, and the current state of play and imbalance in these WTO negotiations was high on the agenda of this meeting. I can report that France and Ireland share the same concerns on the direction of these negotiations and will continue to insist that the Commission does not accept an unbalanced deal which undermines EU agricultural production.

The WTO negotiations are on the Agenda of the Agriculture Council of Ministers next week and I will take the opportunity to reiterate and highlight Ireland's concerns to the Commission and to other Member States and to insist that any WTO agreement must be a balanced one which does not place a disproportionate burden on EU and Irish agriculture.

In addition I will ensure that Ireland continues to play a leading role in the Group of 14+ like-minded Member States who have come together to express concerns in relation to the direction of the WTO agriculture negotiations. I will continue to work closely with like-minded Ministers in other Member States to seek support for my position.

At official level, my Department, and other Departments involved, have and will continue to work assiduously in the various technical meetings to ensure Ireland's interests are best protected.