Allister puts it to Fischer-Boel
25 October 2007
During a debate in
"I need not take time to remind you of the dire straits in which the intensive sector finds itself. I will focus instead on what, I believe, you, the Commissioner, should be doing."
He then put 5 specific points to her:
"1. Recognise that soft measures like market promotion are not enough.
2. Face up, more than has happened to date, to the long-term impact on grain availability and prices of the rampant switch in the
3. With intervention grain stocks an alarming low and the ratio with usage out of kilter, urgently redress the balance.
4. Be more proactive in fighting for speedier approval of GM substitutes. You need, on behalf of agriculture, to match the vigour of Kyprianou and Dimas as they resist GM approvals.
5. Put a floor in the market for our intensive sector, with export refunds extended immediately to meat and hams. I'm not sure private storage will solve much."
In her reply the Commissioner announced cereal import duties were to be suspended, but rejected calls for export refunds, saying it would "send out the wrong signal by prolonging over-production." Responding Mr Allister said, "I am disappointed that the Commissioner is clinging relentlessly to market dogma. Yes, the market has a key role to play, but when a sector is battered like our intensive sector has been battered, then, without help it will perish. Sadly, the EU seems content for this to happen, believing that if the market squeezes out a sector, then so be it. I disagree. The net result will be reliance on dubious imports, whereas we should be helping our sector to export. Hence, the need for export refunds."
