-1
COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
GENERAL SECRETARIAT
PRESS
RELEASE
?448191 (Presse 129)
1508th Council meeting
-
Agriculture
-Brussels, 15 and 16
Juty
1991President: Mr
Piet
BUKMANMinister
for
AgricultureNature Conservation and Fisheries of
the
Netherlands-2-r5/16.VII.91 kin/JM/at
the
Governmentsof
the Member States and the Comnisslonof
the
EuropeanCormunities were represented as follorus:
Belgium:
Mr Paul de
KEERSMAEKER
State Secretaryfor
European
Affairs
andAgriculture
Denmark:
Mr
Laurits
fi)ERNAES
Minister
for
AgricultureGermany:
l.lr
IgnazKIECHLE
FederalMinister
for
Food, Agriculture and Forestryl,lr
Ualter
KIllEL
State Secretary, FederalMinistry of
Food,
Agriculture
and ForestryGreece:
Mr Michaelis
PAPACONSTANTINOU
Minister
for
Agriculture Spain:Hr Pedro SOLBES
MIRA
Minister
for
AgricultureFrance:
Mr Louis MERMAZ
Minister
for
Agriculture-3-151 16. VI r . 91
lcln/JM/at
I re land :
Mr Michael
OTKENNEDY
Mlnlster
for
Agrlculture
anct FoodI
taly:
Mr Giovanni
GORIA
Minister
for
AgrlcultureLuxembourg:
Mr René
STEICHEN
Minister
for
Agriculture
andViticulture
Netherlands:
Mr
Piet
BUKMAN
Minister
for
Agriculture,Nature Conservation and Fisheries Portugal:
Mr
Arlindo
CUNHA
Minister
for
Agriculture,
Fisheriesand Food
United Kingdom:
Mr John SELI{YN
GUMMER
Minister
for
AgricultureMr David
CURRY
Parliamentary Secretary, Agrlcultureo
oo
Commission:
Mr Ray MAC SHARRY Member
-4-151 16. VI I . e1
kin/JM/at
THE DEVELOPMENÎ AND FUÎURE OF THE COMHON AGRICULÎUML POLICY
the
Council hearda
statement by Commissioner Mac SHARRY, who presented the Commission communieation onthe
development andfuture
of
the
commonagrlcultural
policy. It
held
aninitial
general exchangeof
views onthe lmpllcatlons
of
this
communicationin political,
economic,social
andfinancial
terms.The Council noted
the
fundamental changes involvedin
the Commissionrs approachcompared
with
the
currentpolicy
and discussed the maJor problemsto
be faced by European,agricuture
if
the new approach were adopted.In
viewof
the
importanceof
the
Commission cormunication the Council, while recognizingthe
needfor
promptaction,
agreedto
carry out a
thoroughexamination
of
the
communication.tlith this in
mind and pending formal proposalsfrom
the
Commission,it
instructed the
Special Cormittee onAgriculture
to undertakea technical
examinatlonof
the
variouspoints
and problems raised bythe
Commission communlcatlon.-5-15116.VII. 1991
kin/JM/at
URUGUAY ROUND
.
AGRICULÎURAL ASPECÎSThe Council was informed by
the
Commissionof
the progressof
negotiatlons under the Uruguay Round.Mr Mac SHARRY
briefed the
Council on thepoints
which hadarisen
in
thediscussions
in
Geneva sincethe
last
Agriculture
Councilat
the
endof
June.the
Council confirmedits
attachmentto
the
negotiatingbrief
onagricultural
matters whichthe
Commission had been given and reaffirmedthat
anysolutlon
tothe
agricultural
problems should be sought aspart
of
anoverall
approachcovering
aIl
the
multilateral
trade negotiations.This
itemh,ill
feature
again onthe
agendafor
the next meetingof
theAgriculture
Council, which expressedits
determinatlonto
befully
involvedin
developments
in
the
negotiations.-I-151 16.VI
I.
r991kin/JM/at
MISCELLANEOUS DECIS IONS
Other Decisions regarding
agricultural
policy
The Council adopted
the
Directives-
Iaying
downhealth
conditionsfor
the
production andplacing
onthe
market oflive
bivalve
molluscs,-
Iaying
downthe
principles
governingthe
organlzationof
veterinary
checks onanimals
entering the
community fromthird
countries and amendingDirectives
89 / 6621 EEC and 90/ 4ZSIEEC.Both these
Directives
had beenthe
subiectof
apolitical
agreementat
theAgriculture
Council on 26 and 2? June (see Press Release ?144t91 (Presse 1211).It
also
adoptedthe Directive
onthe
marketingof
plant-protection
products.This
Directive,
on whichthe
Council had givenits political
agreementat its
meeting on 26 and 27 June 1991,sets out
to
establish
a harmonized procedurefor
the authorization
of
plant-protection
productsto
be usedfor
the protection
ofplants
andplant
products against harmful organisms and weeds (see Press Release714419
1
(Presse 121 ) ).The Council
also
adoptedthe
Regulations-
on improvingthe
efficiency
of
agricultural
structures.
the
aimof
theRegulation
is to
consolidatethe regulations
in
force
with
the
aim ofsimplifying
andclarifying
the
presentationof
Community law.- II .
15/16.VII. 1991
kin/JM/at
amending Regulation (EEC) No 790/89 as regards
the
maximum amount applied toaid
for
quality
and marketlng lmprovementIn
the
nut-
andlocust
bean-growingsector.
the
amendmentis
deslgned, bydifferentlating
beth,eenthe
amounts ofaid, to
increasethe attractiveness
of
restructuring
measures (modernlzationthrough grubbing) compared
with
measuresfor
crop lmprovement. The new amountsof
aid/ha are
set
at
the fotlowlng
levels:=
475 ECU/haper
yearfor
5 yearsfor
grubbing operations folrowed byreplanting
and/orvarietal
conversion,= 200 ECU/ha per year
for
the
remalnlng yearsof
the
plan's
implementation,= 2OO ECU/ha per year
for
a periodof
10 yearsin
the
caseof
other
operations.The proposal concerning
nuts
andlocust
beans had been submittedin
the
contextof
the
1991/ 1992prlces
package.ECSC
the
Councilformally
adoptedthe
Declsions onthe
openingfor
the
period 1JuIy
1991to
30 June 1992:- of
a
zero-dutytariff
quotaof
300 tonnesfor
certain
flat-rolted
products ofsilicon-electrical
steel
for
the
Benelux countrles;- of
a
zero-dutytarlff
quotafor
France,the
Benelux countries and Germany of1 430
t,
1 380t
and 1 200t
respectively
for
special wire
rodfor
themanufacture
of
valve
springs.- III
-15116.VII.1991 kin/JM/at
Fisheries
The Council adopted
a
Regulationtranscribing
into
Conmunitylau
certainconservation measures applied by
the
former German Democratic Repubticto
a
zonesituated
in
German rÿatersof
the
Baltic
Sea(the
rroderbankr).Under
this
instrument, whlch amendsfor
the
fourth
time Regulation 1866186 on theconservation
of
fishery
resourcesin
the h,atersof
the
Baltic
Sea,the Belts
andthe
Sound,it is
prohibited
throughoutthe
yearto flsh
with
anytrawl,
Danish seine andsimilar net
in
the
rOderbankrr region.SOVIEÎ UNION
lechnical
assistanceFollowing
the
political
agreement reachedat its
meeting on 17 and 18 June, theCouncil
formally
adoptedthe
Regulation ontechnlcal
asslstancefor
the
Union of SovietSocialist
Republicsfor
the
economic reforms under way andfor
themeasures aimed
at
bringing
aboutthe
transltion
to
a market economy andfor
related
projects.It is
pointedout
that
this
assistance,the
princtpte
of
which was declded on bythe
Rome European Council,will
beput into effect
bythe
Comrrunityin
1991 and1992.
It t,ill
have a budgetof
ECU 400mitllon
in
1991,with
the
funds estlmatedas necessary
for
'1992still
havingto
be decided bythe
council, actlnt
unanimously.
The
technical
assistancewill
give
priority to
the
fields of
public
and prlvate sector managementtralning,
financial
services,
energy,transport
and foodstuffsdistribut
ion.-IV-15116.VII. 1991
kin/JM/at
Community assistance
will
takethe
formof
grantsto
be releasedln
tranches, asprojects
areactually
implemented.Liberalizatlon
of
certain quantltative
restrictions
the
Council adoptedthe
Regulation onthe liberallzatlon
of
certain
quantitativerestrictions with
regardto
the
USSR.the
Regulation providesfor
the
dismantlingof
speciflc
quantitative
restrictions
still
remainingwith
regardto
the USSR onI
August 1991, thusbringing
forrlardthe
datelaid
downin
the
EC-USSR Agreement whichstipulated
that this
dismantling was
to
take place by3l
December1995. fire
aimof
the
Regulatlonis
to
strengthentrade
relations with
the
USSR, thuscontributing
to lts
economicrestructuring.
ANTI.DUMPING
the
Council adoptedthe
Regulation introducinga
definitive
anti-dumping duty onimports
of
small-screen colourtelevision
receivers-
wlth
a
diagonal measurementof
the
screen exceeding 15,5 cmbut not
exceeding 42 cm- orlginatlnt
in
Hong Kong andthe
People's Republicof
China.the rate
of
dutyis
4,8t
for
productsoriginating
in
Hong Kong and 15,3tfor
products
originating
in
the
Peoplefs Republicof
Chinaof
the
net,free-at-frontier price
before duty.-v-151t6.VII. 1991
kin/JM/at
However,
the
rate
of
anti-dumplng dutyfor
manufactured productssold
for
exportby
the following
undertaklngsls
set
out
below, expressed as a percentageof
thenet,
free-at-frontler prlce
before duty:Rate
of
duty(a)
Hong KongCony
Electronic
Products LtdHanwah Electronics Ltd
Kong l,Iah
Electronic Btterprises
Ltd Koyoda Electronics LtdLuks
Industrlal
Co Ltdlai
l{ahlelevision
Industrles
Ltd(b)
People's Republicof
ChinaFujian
Hltachi
Televislon Co Ltd Huaquiang Sanyo Electronlcs Co Ltd3,1
4,8
3,1
4,6 4,1 2,1
13, 1
7,5
$3
Bruxel
les,
le
12IOTE Bl0(91)2,10 CC. AUX UEMBRES
Jul I
let
1991AUX BUREAUX I\IATIO}IAUX
DU SERVICE DU PORTE PAROLE
CONSEIL AGRICULTURE
(Brurellos,
lcs
lundl
15ot
nard!
16Julllet
1991)(G.
Klely)
Le
Consell
des
Communautés Européennestlêndra
sa
1508ème SessionAgrlculture
- le
lundl
15Julllet
à
partlr
de
15het
le
mardl
16Juiilet
1991 au Bât lment Char lemagne
à
Bruxelles,
sous
la
Présldence deM.
P ietBukman,
Mlnlstre
de
l'Agrlculture
des
Pays-Bas.L'ordre
du jour
duConse I
I
comportera
I es po Ints
su I vants:r
Approbatlonde
la !lsto
despolnts
'A'
Adoptlon
de
la
dlrectlve
duConsêll
concêrnantla
mlsesur
le
marchéde
prodults
phytopharmaceutlques(doc.
COM(89)34et
doc.
COM(91)87)Adoptlon
de la
dlrectlve
du
ConselI flrant les
règles
sanitalres
réglssant
la
productlon et la
mlse
sur lê
marchéde
mol tusquesblvalvês
vlvants.
(doc.
COM(89)648)Adoptlon
de la dlrectlve
du
Consell
flxant les
règles
sanltalres
réglssant
la
productlon
et
la
mlsesur le
marchédes
prodults
de
tapêche.
(doc.
C0M(89)645)Adoptlon
de
la
dlrectlve
du
ConselI flxant
los
prlnclpes
relatlfs
àl'organlsat
lon des
contrôles
vétérlnalrês pour les
anlmaux
enprovenance des pays
tlers
lntrodults
dansla
Communauté.(doc.
COM(91 )75)Adopt
lon du
règlament
du
ConselI
concêrnant
l'amét torat ion'
det'efflcaclté
desstructures de
l'agrlculture
(doc.
SEC(91)268)Adoptlon du règlement du Consell en ce
qul
concernele
montant maximaldê
l'alde à
t'amél loratlon
do
la
quallté et
do ta
commerctal tsat tondans
le
secteur desfrults
à
coqueêt
d6s caroubes(doc.
C0M(91)72).r
Rôforncdc
la
Polltlquc Agrlcolc
Conrnunc: comillnlcatlondc
!aCotrmlsslon
(doc.
C0il(91)258)La Commlsslon des Commùnautés Européennes
a
adoptéte
9
Juiltêt
1991 àStrasbourg
les proposltlons
relatlves
à
l'évolutlon
et à
l'avenlr
dêla
pollt lquê
agrlcole
communêprésentées
par M.
Ray
Mac Sharry, Commlssalre chargéde l'agrlculture
et
du
développementrural.
Cesproposltlons,
qul
sulvent
grosso modola
polltlquê
oéJà exposéepar
la Commlsslonon
févrler
dernler
dansson
documentdê
réf lexlon
(doc.COM(91)100),
constltuent
lê
remodelagelo plus radlcal de la
PACeffectué
depuls
son
lnstltut
lon
II y a trente ans.
Elles
serontlntrodultes à
partlr
de 1993et
devlendront totalêment operatlonnel les en 1996.La
Commlsslonfalt
ces proposltlons en
vuede
remédler aux problèmesde
la
balsse des
revenusagricoles,
de
l'lnstablllté
des marchés, del'accumulat
lon
des stocks de denrées al lmentalres excédentalres,de
la cro Issance
des cotts
budgéta Ires et des
dommagescausés
à| 'env I ronnement
par
une productlon
I ntens Ive.
E I Ies
sont
présentéeségalement
dans
le
contexte
d'un
large
consensusselon
lequel
cettes I tuat
lon
ne saura It
durer .Uruguay Round
-
volot
AgrlcoleLe
règlement
du
ConselI arrêtant les
règles sanltalres
pour
laproductlon
et la
mlso
sur lo
marchôdo
vlandes
fratches
(doc. cor(89)673)et
la
déclslon
du Consellrelatlve
aur condltlons
d'octrol
de dôrogatlonstemporalres
et llrnltées aux règles
comnunautalres sanltalres
spéclflquos pour
la
productlon
et la
mlsesur le
marchéde
produltsd'or
lglne
anlmale(doc.
COf(89)670)seront
adoptésen
po I ntJulllet
1991 .lors
du
Consell
Marchélntérieur
du
22-/
Brurel les,le
15 Jul I
let
1991NOTE BIO(91) 215 AUX BUREAUX NATTONAUX
CC
:
AUX MEMBRES DU SERVICE DU PORTE-PAROLERENDEZ-VOUS DE
lllDl -
15 Jut Itct
1991COUNCIL OF AGRICULTURAL ITINISTERS
(G.
KIELY)Thls
meetlngof
the
Agrlcultural
Council
wlll
concentrateon
the
reformof
the
CommonAgrlculturat Pollcy
whlch Mr Macsharrywill
present
to
theMlnlsters.
Mr MacSharry
witt
makethe
point
that this
packageof
proposals
is
theonly optlon
for
the future
of
EuropeanAgricultur6.
The
implementationof
the
proposals wl It
guaranteefarmers'
lncomes,rêstore
market batance,reduce
surplus
stocks,
benef It
consumersand
respect
env I ronmenta Irequ I rements.
The
alternatlve
ls to
maintain
the status
quo whichwitl result in
theCAP
"self-clestructlîg",
wlth
massivestocks,
serlous reductions
in
priceswlthout
compensatlon
and
no
slgntf
icant
long-term
benefit to
the consumer.lf
the
Councll
of
Mlnisters
havenot
agreedthls
packagêby the
end ofthe yoar,
thê
Cormlsslon
wl II
have
no
option
but to
propose
f urtherrestrlctlons on
lntervention
and quotareductions
in
the contert
of
theannual
prlcê
flring
round.Two
polnts
ln
relation
to
reform
have beenraised by
a
numberof
farmorganisatlona
andminlsters
and deservea
responsê.1.
Thêre
is
no
guaranteethat direct aid
measureswitl
continue
long term !The
dlrect aid
measureswill
have
the
samestatus
as the
presentarrangements
for the
common organisation of the
market
and
wi t Itherofore
be permanent arrangements.2.
Farmers shouldearn
their
lncomefrom
the
market andnot
fromdirect
componsat ion !Farmêrs
are
not
earning
their
lncomefrom
the
market todaygiven
the hugedlfferênco
bêtweonintervention prices
andworld
marketprices,
e. g.
lntervent
lon
Prlce
Wor lct Market Pr iceECU/tonne
ECU/tonneBut
ter
Beef
Cerea t s
-2-Materlel
ctiffusé!P 670
-
M. Chrlstophersenà
AthènestP 673
-
Promlèretable
roundsur la
biotechnologielP
671-
M.Mlllan
à
la
signature
duJoint
venture FordlYWà
SetuballP
676- Slr
LeonBrlttan
commênce unesérie
d'exposéssur
la
politique
dê
la
concurrênco au Centre des étuoes de politique
européennelP
677-
Pollt
lqueréglonal:
Programme opérationnel
pour
I'lr
lande clu Nord clansle
secteurde
l'envlronnementlP
678-
Polit
lqueréglonale:
Programme opérationnel
pour te
dévelopmentrural
do
la
région
de Bolzano (ltalie)
Discours de Mme Scrlvener
à
Washingtonà
Europeanlnstitute.
Bruxel
les,
le
15July
1991NOTE BIO
(91)
246 AUX BUREAUX NAT]ONAUXCC. AUX MEMBRES DU SERV!CE DU PORTE-PAROLE
COUNCIL OF AGRICULTURAL MINISTERS, 15 JULY 1991
(G.
K iely)
Commissioner Mac Sharrv oresents orooosals on Reform
of
CApThe EEC Commissloner
for
Agrlculture
Mr Ray Mac Sharry today presented theCommisslon'9 proposals
for
the
reformof
the
ConunonAgricuIturaI PoIicy
tothe
CounclI of
Agricultural
Ministers.
ln
outllnlng
th6
proposals
to
thê Mlnisters
Mr MacSharry
emphasised thêneed
for
reform, stressing
that
the
status
quo wasnot
an
option.
Thepresent
package had been constructedwith
great care
he
said
to
ensure abalanco bêtwoen
the sectors
and bêtweencategories
of
producer.
lt
wouldlead
to
better
market
balance,
better
prices and
incomesfor
farmers,bettêr
useof
budgetary rêsources anclbetter
careof
the
environment.It is
a clear
choicesaid
Mr Mac Sharry between reformor
the status
quo.Maintainlng
tho status
quo
would
result ln
growlng
disruption
onagricultura!
markets,
evêr
increaslng
food
stocks, dêclining prices
andfarm
incomoswlthout
any compênsatlonfor
farmers,
anduncertainty
for
thefuture.
The
only beneficlarles
of
the
presentpollcy
would bethe
ownersof
storagofac i I i t
lês for
surplus
stocks,
wh Ile
consumêrs,farmers and
taxpayers would contlnueto
paÿthe price
for
an ineffective
poticy.
A
recent
survey has shownthat
a great
maJorityof
the
citizens
of
Europewant and
êxpêct
potlcy
makersto
take
the
necessarysteps
to
reform
theagricultural
pollcy.
The Commission's
proposals,
hesaid,
addressthe root
causeof
def icienciesin
the
prêsent policy,
namoly,
thê
direct
relat
ionship between product ionand
the
price guarantee.
i{o
pract icaI
a I ternat i'ves had been presented sofar.
Whllo the
consumêr wl II benefit
substantial1y from the
price
reductions,
the vast
maJorlty
of
farmers
(over
gOX)
will be fully
compensated.At the
same time market
ba Iance
w i II be
restored,
theenv i ronment wi I
I be botter
protectod and
our
products
wi II be
morecompetitlvo on
both
the
domestic andinternational
markots.Referring
to the
duratlon
of the
compensatory moasurês Mr Mac Sharry conflrmedthat
they
would bopart
of
the
commonorganizations
of
thê
marketand
as
such would have
tho
samostatus
and
socurity as other
support-r-0n
the often
quoted
deslre
of
farmers
to
oarn
their
incomesfrom
themarket
rather
than
throughdlrect
compensation hê questioned whetherthis
u,as
the
casê
in
practice.
The substantial
intervention
levels
and erport refunds neededto
maintaln
eristing
prlces
andthe
hugodifference
betweenintervention
andworld
marketprlces
(butter
2927 ECU/tonne, comparêd to900
ECU/tonneon
the world market, cereals
155 ECU/tonne comparedto
aworld
marketprice
of
55-65 ECU/tonne andbeef
2600 ECu/tonne compared to some 600avallablo on the world
marketat
present)
cast
serious
doubt onwhether
curr6nt
incomelevels properly
rellect
whatthe
market
is
preparedto
bear
in
roality.
The Commlsslon has
fulf
illed lts
responslbllity
by
facing
up
to
the
presentserious
problemsfaclng
the
CAP and proposingconcrete
solutions
throughthese proposals,
sald
Mr
MacSharry,
lt is
nowup to thê
CounciI
ofAgricultural Mlnisters
to
take the
necessarydêclslons
to
ensurethat
theseproblems
aro
resolved.Brusse I s,
]OTE B !O
CC.: AUX
16
July
1991(91)
246(sulte
1)MEMBRES DU SERVICE
AUX BUREAUX NATIONAUX
DU PORTE PAROLE
COUNCIL OF AGRICULTURAL MINISTERS, 15 JULY 1991
(G.
KlclY)CAP
Rcforr:
lntroduclng
thc
proposalsIr
llac
Sharry nadethc
follorlng
polnts:-the
proposals
aro
constructed
to
ensurea
balance betweendifferent
sectors
and
dlfferent
categorles
of
producerswithin
each
sêctoralso
sltuatlon in dlffcrent
states
no
proposals
could
or
shouldleave
sltuation
as
lt
lsurgc
Mlnlstcrs
to
rescrvc
final
Judgementuntl! all
elements have beenfully clarlflcd
and understood.-
rggcotcdalternat
lvcs rclat
lng
to
voluntary
curtai
lmentof
product ionrnd rcduclng
lmportsarc not
practical
alternatives
ertra
productlon
and surplusosaro
Intrlnslc to
the
present
system-thls ls solf
defcatlng
for
farmers and
harmful
to
most
non-farminglntercsts
that
are affected
by
the
pol icyCommlsslon's proposals
offer
a
real
prospectof
remedyingthe
presentdofltlcnclos
thc
proposals havcas
thclr
objectivc
-
better
markêtbalance, better
farm
lncomcs,a
bcttcr
wayof
spendlng scarce budgetary resources,andbettcr
carc
of
thc
cnvlronment.system
of dlrcct
alcl would assurefarn
lncome moresoliclly
than underprcsont
reglme.arrangomonts should
apply
from beglnnlngof
1992 marketing year.llln
lstcrs'
Rcactlons:-All
Mlnlsters
accoptedthat
thc
proposals
constituted
a
goodbasis
for
nogotlatlon
but
lnslstcd
that
ccrtaln
aspects would haveto
bo
changedbcfors
belng
morc
acccptablo. Whlle
on tho
onê
hand
someMinisters
obJected
to
the
proposocllevcl
of
modulationof
supportothers
criticised
the
proposals bccauscthcy
clldnot
gofar
onough regarding modulation.A
numberof
Mlnlstors
emphasiscdthe
need
lor
coherence bêtween thê reglmesfor
ctlfferent
procluctsespscially
in
the
caseof
arable
cropsc.g.
ccroals,
USol
lsecdsMany
also
cmphaslsctlthc
lmportancoof
CAPreform being
compatible with-2-Whllo
somoMinlsters
arguêd
in
favour
of
the
need
to
concentrate
onmatntalnlng
vlable
compotitivo
units
others
said that the
budgetaryrosourcos should bc
dlrected
moreat
the
weakerunits
of
production.While
prlce
reductlons would havoto
be progresslveover
a cêrtain
numberof
ycars,
thc
levcl
of
rcductlon
proposedby the
Commlssion was seen ascrcosslvc
by
most
Mlnlsters
and
somequestioned
the
abl Iity of
theproposed
levcl
of
funding
to
meetthe
requirementsfor
direct
aid.
Tho
polnt
wasalso
madethat
the
obJectiveof
reform shouldbe
to
reduce budgctarycxpondlturc
rather than
lncrcase
it,
as
wouldarise
under theCommlss
ion's
proposa I .Some
Mlnlstcrs
also
ctuêstlonedthê
effectlvoness
of the
proposals
tocontrol
productlon
glven
that
thoseapplled
over the
years
hadnot
doneso.
Whlte
somoMlnlsters
said
that tho
level
of
premia would need
to
beincreased
in
ordor
that
the
competltivenessof
grass
produced I ivestockproducts
wouldbc
maintalnedvls à vls
grain
basedproduction,
otherssald
that
thosc prcmla shouldbe
llmlted,
productneutral
and degressive.There
was gênoral support for thê
accompanyingmeasures i.e.
env i ronmenta I
,
afforestat ion
and early
ret i rement schemes.tn
sunmary,Mlnlstors'
roact lons were posltlve
to
the
ertent
that
nobodysupported
the
malntenanceof
the status
quo,
êvorybodybolieved
that
theCommlsslon
proposals werê
a
goodbasis
for
negot lation
and
indicatedtheir
wllllngnoss
to
work towardsa
conclusion,
omphasisingthe
needfor
the
Commlsslonto
showflêxlbl
Ilty ln its
proposals.}OTE
CC.: Bro
AUX
(91)
246 (SUrrE2
ETUETBRES DU SERVICE DU F IN)
PORTE PAROLE
COU}.ICIL OF AGRICULTURAL TINISTERS, 16 JULY 1991
(G.
Klcly)
GAP Rcforn:
Replying
to
the
Mlnisters'commonts on CAP reform Mr Mac Sharry made thefollowlng
comments:-ho
was plêasedwlth
the
reaction
of
Mlnisters
in that it
was moreposltlve
than
erpected and
glven
the
broad range
of
views
on
theproposals
he
saw
thê
Commlssion'sproposals
as a
realist
ic
middleground.
He emphaslsedthat
the
Commission vÿouldbe
f lerible in
its
approachto
the
nêgotatlons.he
welcomedthe fact that
alI
Ministers
recognised
the
need for
reform.
Agriculture,
he
sald,
wasgoing
deeper
into
crlsis
and
theCouncl
I
hacla
responslbi Ilty to
take quick
decisions
on
reform.Failure
to
agreeon
the
packageby
December hesaid
would necessitatefurther
proposals
from the
Commlssionin
the
context
of
the
1992/93price firing
whlch
would lnvotve
price
and quota
cuts
withoutcompensat ion.
on the
suggestlon
that
voluntary
production
control
should
play
anlmportant
role in
reform,
Mr MacSharry pointed
out that
we already have these measurês andthey
havenot ylelded
the
necessaryresults.
the
prlce
reductions
proposed,
hê
said,
were
necesssaryto
makeCommunity products
competltlve on
domesticand
international
markets. The Commlsslonis
loslng
lts
lntornal
marketfor
cereals
at
thê
rateof
2m tonnesper
year,
to
cêrêaI
subst Itute.
set-aside
requirementsand
compensatory measureswould
be
revisedperlodical
ly to
take
accountof
market requirements.on the
aspect
of
d i scr im i nat ing
aga inst the
Iarger
farmers,
hêrecalled
that
someMinistors believed
that
the
small
producers werebeing
discriminated
against.
Furthermorethe
!arger
farmers have moreoptions
e.g.
use
of
set-aside land
for
non-fooduses
etc.
and
theyalso
makea greater
contr ibutlon
to
the
surptus.he
suggestedthat
the
speclal agrlculturat
Committeeand
technical groupsshould
nowstudy the
proposalsso as
to
erpedite the
work ofthe
Councll.
GATT:-Mr
MacSharry
informedthe
Council
of
the state
of
play
on
the
GATTdiscussion,
pointing
out
that
the
Commission had expressedits
ser iousreservat
lons
on
the
"Dunkel"
paperfor its
shortcomings, particular
ly
inrelat
lon to the
absenceof
any
reference
to
rebalancing.
He
also informed themthat
he and VIce-President Andriessenwill
meet AmbassadorHllls
and Secretary
Madiganon July
30
on the
question
of the
GATT-2-Minlstors
comments endorsêdthe llne
belng takenby the
Commissionin
the negot i ations,
emphas Ised
that
the
Commun ity's offer
be
ma i nta ined
andabsolutely lnsisted
that
thê
Agrlcultural
Mlnlsters
be
responsible for
the
agrlcultural
aspectsof
the
GATTnegotlatlon.
Any
othcr
buslnessBeef
:-The
serlous
market
sltuation
was
raised
by a
numberof
Ministers(lreland,
Francê, Bolglum andPortugal)
who urgedthe
Commissionto
bevigilant
as
îar as
lmports
are
concernedand
to
makeêvery
effort
to lncreaseerports
andoutlets
-
especially
to
the
Middle and Far East.The
polnt
wasalso
madethat
the
newinterventlon
arrangementscould
leadto
a
downwardsplral.
Responding
Mr
MacSharry
said
that
slaughterings
at this
time
of
yearwere
hlgher
than erpectedwhich
is
causing some weaknessin
the
market-that
there
hasnot
been anyappreciable increasê
in imports that
the Commlsslonhas
applled
tho
safeguarclclause
on
calf
imports
f rom East Europeancountries
(425,000hd
comparedto
900,000last
yoar)
-
exportcertificates
for
607,000 tonnes have been issuedi.e.
double
last
year'slevel
at this
stage
and
have bought 491,600tonnes
into
interventionslnce
January-
ln
othêr
wordsthe
varlous
aspectsof
the
market support mechanismare
operatlng
at
a
very
high
level .He
also
pointed
out that
the
Community spendsabout
1 billion
ECU ondirect
premiafor
beef
producers.
Whilethe
Commissionwill
be
flexible
in
addressing
thê
beef
market
situation, lt is too early to
drawconclusions
on the
opêrat ionof
the
new intervention
regime.Corn
Gluten:-The problem
of
maize germ cakebeing found
in
corn
gluten
imports wasraised
(France) and
the
Commissionwas
urged
to
ensure
that
customarrangemonts were appl
ied
corrêctly
throughoutthe
Community.ln
replyMr Mac
Sharry
lnformedthe
Councilthat
samplesof
corngluten
with
up to 4OXmaize germ cake have been found
and
that the
issue must
bêaddressed.
The
Commissionwill try to
find
both
a
transit
ional
andpermanent
solution
to
the
matter,
including
clear rules
for
the
future.
Soft
frult
andmushrooms:-The
safeguard
clauses
on the
importation
of soft red fruit
(frozenraspberries
and
strawberries) from
Poland and Yugoslaviaand
preservedmushrooms
mainly
from Poland were ertendedto
September 25 and November 1respectively.
],l,ert Corncl
ls:-Septenber 23121September