asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if the entry of Greece into the EC will reduce the level of aid to Ireland from the various EC funds.

As Deputies will be aware, Ireland proposed and had accepted by the Council of the European Communities at the opening of the Greek negotiations in July 1976, a Council statement to the effect that on Greek accession, subject to the usual budgetary procedures, appropriate provision would be made for the needs of the enlarged Community. The entry of Greece should not, therefore, result in any reduction in the level of aid which Ireland receives from the various EEC funds. Deputies will, however, have a fuller opportunity to discuss and debate the terms of the Act of Accession of Greece to the European Communities when I introduce measures to ratify the Act of Accession. I hope to do this in the near future.

Does not the statement of the Council ring somewhat hollow in the light of the present financial crisis in the EEC? Bearing that in mind would the Minister not accept that whatever welcome we give to the Greek accession inevitably it will have an effect on the funding that will be available from the point of view of the Farm Fund, the Regional Fund and the Social Fund?

The Deputy is effectively asking will the accession of Greece affect the benefits which Ireland will derive from the CAP and the regional fund. The Deputy will appreciate that Greek agriculture will not be in direct competition with our agricultural produce as most of Greece's agricultural exports are Mediterranean products. Therefore, in all the circumstances, there is no conflict. It is my view—and I believe that of this and the previous Government—that we should positively welcome Greek membership of the Common Market as a very important additional influence in stabilising the peace of Europe.

The Minister will be aware that, as a precondition of our acceptance of the Greek application, we secured the agreement of the members of the Council that the resources of the Community would be increased pro rata with the needs of Greek and other additional membership. I take it that we are ensuring that that will be fulfilled and implemented in full and to the letter in 1981. Is it not the case that this will bring nearer the point, or cause to arise earlier, the issue of the 1 per cent limit on VAT? Is that not now made even more crucial by Greek membership?

The Deputy is referring to our own resources in all the circumstances. Indeed I am grateful to the Leader of the Opposition for his intervention, because effectively he has crystallised the matter and answered his own question.

Is there any acceptance within the Government that even if Greek accession resulted in some minor diminution of access on the part of Ireland to the regional fund and indeed to the social fund nevertheless we should still press ahead with our total support for Greek accession, even if we are affected to a relative degree by such an accession, and that we should have to do this?

The first part of the Deputy's question is rather speculative, and I am not fobbing the Deputy off or anything like that. I agree entirely with what he said in the second part of his supplementary question.

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