Billy Timmins (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Question 93: To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food the position regarding the latest communications with EU officials in respect of impending WTO negotiations; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5044/09]

Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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The current position in regard to the WTO negotiations is that talks are stalled following the failure to reach agreement at the Ministerial meeting last July and the decision to defer indefinitely a second Ministerial meeting planned for last December. The World Economic Forum at Davos last month provided no new momentum for the negotiations and the next key event will be the G20 meeting in London in April.

Against that background I, my officials and my colleagues in Government have continued to pursue Ireland's interests in the negotiations with the Commission and other Member States at every opportunity at co-ordination meetings in Geneva, at the Article 133 Committee in Brussels and at the recent meeting of Trade Ministers. We have also recently written once again to the Commission in relation to the particular difficulties arising from the current market access proposals, and we are awaiting a response.