17 Mrs. T. Ahearn asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if he has made any representations to the EC Commission regarding the statements made recently in Washington by Sir Leon Brittain, Vice-President of the European Commission and by the EC Ambassador to the United States, Mr. Andreas Van Agt, to the effect that he has agreed to consider quantitative limitation on agricultural export subsidies and a commitment to a guaranteed minimum of import access for US goods; and if he will outline the implications of such a policy change by the EC in the current world trade talks for Ireland.

18 Mr. J. Mitchell asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if he has made any representations to the EC Commission regarding the statements made recently in Washington by Sir Leon Brittain, Vice-President of the European Commission and by the EC Ambassador to the United States, Mr. Andreas Van Agt, to the effect that he has agreed to consider quantitative limitation on agricultural export subsidies and a commitment to a guaranteed minimum of import access for US goods; and if he will outline the implications of such a policy change by the EC in the current world trade talks for Ireland.

20 Mr. Allen asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if he has made any representations to the EC Commission regarding the statements made recently in Washington by Sir Leon Brittain, Vice-President of the European Commission and by the EC Ambassador to the United States, Mr. Andreas Van Agt, to the effect that he has agreed to consider quantitative limitation on agricultural export subsidies and a commitment to a guaranteed minimum of import access for US goods; and if he will outline the implications of such a policy change by the EC in the current world trade talks for Ireland.

24 Mr. G. Mitchell asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if he has made any representations to the EC Commission regarding the statements made recently in Washington by Sir Leon Brittain, Vice-President of the European Commission and by the EC Ambassador to the United States, Mr. Andreas Van Agt, to the effect that he has agreed to consider quantitative limitation on agricultural export subsidies and a commitment to a guaranteed minimum of import access for US goods; and if he will outline the implications of such a policy change by the EC in the current world trade talks for Ireland.

34 Mr. Lowry asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if he has made any representations to the EC Commission regarding the statements made recently in Washington by Sir Leon Brittain, Vice-President of the European Commission and by the EC Ambassador to the United States, Mr. Andreas Van Agt, to the effect that he has agreed to consider quantitative limitation on agricultural export subsidies and a commitment to a guaranteed minimum of import access for US goods; and if he will outline the implications of such a policy change by the EC in the current world trade talks for Ireland.

41 Mr. Doyle asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if he has made any representations to the EC Commission regarding the statements made recently in Washington by Sir Leon Brittain, Vice-President of the European Commission and by the EC Ambassador to the United States, Mr. Andreas Van Agt, to the effect that he has agreed to consider quantitative limitation on agricultural export subsidies and a commitment to a guaranteed minimum of import access for US goods; and if he will outline the implications of such a policy change by the EC in the current world trade talks for Ireland.

47 Mr. Cullimore asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if he will outline the current situation in relation to the negotiations on agriculture under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade; and if he has satisfied himself that the EC Commission is giving sufficient recognition to the serious difficulties which would be created for Irish agriculture if there are to be any further concessions to the American position.

58 Mr. Belton asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if he has made any representations to the EC Commission regarding the statements made recently in Washington by Sir Leon Brittain, Vice-President of the European Commission and by the EC Ambassador to the United States, Mr. Andreas Van Agt, to the effect that he has agreed to consider quantitative limitation on agricultural export subsidies and a commitment to a guaranteed minimum of import access for US goods; and if he will outline the implications of such a policy change by the EC in the current world trade talks for Ireland.

I propose to take Parliamentary Questions Nos. 17, 18, 20, 24, 34, 41, 47 and 58 together.

The Community's agriculture offer in the context of the GATT negotiations was agreed, after lengthy discussions over a period of weeks in various Council formations, at the Agriculture Council on 5-6 November 1990. The offer provides for a 30 per cent reduction in overall support over the ten years from 1986, based on an aggregate support measurement unit together with subsidiary commitments on border measures and on export supports.

In the discussion in the Council leading up to the approval of the Community's offer we secured agreement that the fundamental principles of the CAP were not negotiable and that no specific concessions would be made in regard to individual aspects of the policy such as export refunds. The Community's global approach to the negotiations safeguards those positions. In addition, there were particular guarantees given in the Council in November that any separate undertaking on export subsidies would be incompatible with the global approach. The offer as agreed in Council in November, together with the Council declarations in relation to the conduct of the negotiations, are in effect the parameters within which the Commission, who under the Treaty are the Community's negotiators in international trade negotiations, must operate. This was the case at the GATT meeting in Brussels in December and continues to be so. While the Commission negotiators at that GATT meeting indicated that the Community may, subject to certain conditions being met, be prepared to explore the possibility of undertaking some commitments on minimum market access and on the volume of products which would be exported with export subsidies, the Council never agreed to such an approach and indeed made it clear on several occasions that the negotiators had to respect the mandate.