EU Banana Regime (Hansard, 19 February 1998)

§ 11. Ms Abbott
If he will visit the World Trade Organisation in Geneva to discuss the European Union's banana regime; and if he will make a statement.[28755]

Dr. John Cunningham
Negotiation in the WTO is a matter for the European Commission. I have made clear my determination to secure an outcome that both conforms to WTO rules and honours our long-standing commitments to Caribbean producers.

§ Ms Abbott
Does my right hon. Friend agree that the WTO ruling on the banana regime caused consternation and upset throughout the Caribbean? Many eastern Caribbean countries are wholly dependent on banana exports for their foreign exchange. The ruling also has serious social implications, because the banana industry is still a big employer in Jamaica and the eastern Caribbean. Can my right hon. Friend assure me that, during its presidency of the European Union, the United Kingdom will do all that it can to bring about an outcome that will preserve the living standards and social structures of the eastern Caribbean?

Dr. Cunningham
My hon. Friend is absolutely right. The Windward Islands, Belize and some other Caribbean islands depend hugely on banana production. Only this week, at the Agriculture Council in Brussels, we discussed progress on a new proposal to replace the one that was ruled out by the WTO decision—which, like my hon. Friend, I found very disappointing. We are determined to secure a new agreement for Caribbean banana producers.

§ Sir Peter Tapsell
Does the Minister recall that, at the time when Britain signed the treaty of Rome, the most solemn undertakings were given to our friends in the Caribbean—with whom we have historic links stretching over centuries—that their banana exports, on which their 1175 whole lives depend, would be protected? Must those undertakings be subordinated to the German wish to eat large numbers of continental American bananas?

Dr. Cunningham
The hon. Gentleman is absolutely right. We have historic obligations to those tiny Caribbean democracies, and the Government are determined to fulfil our obligations, for all the reasons that he gave. I cannot see for the life of me why the complainants to the WTO made such a fuss. The tiny Caribbean countries produce only about 8 per cent. of the European banana market.