§ Mr. Austin MitchellTo ask the Prime Minister (1) what were(a) the EEC guaranteed thresholds and (b) actual output for vegetable oil and oil seeds over the past 10 years; what is the formula agreed by the EEC Council of Ministers for reducing output; what assessment has been made of its effect on production; and what assessment has been made of As expected effect on imports from (i) the developing countries and (ii) other countries;
(2) what is the estimated cost of the new arrangements for agriculture agreed at the Brussels meeting of the EEC Council of Ministers for oil seeds in 1988 and for each succeeding year; what extra payments have been or will be made to Spain and Portugal in respect of agricultural production; what other payments will be made outside the agricultural chapter; what assessment has been made of the expected effect of the price regime on agricultural production; and if she will publish in the Official Report agricultural output figures for the EEC over the past 10 years.
§ The Prime MinisterThe information requested on output is as follows for the three principal oil seeds. (Details of oil output are not readily available but vegetable oil content of rape seed, sunflower seed and soya beans is about 39 per cent. 40 per cent. and 17.5 per cent. respectively).
Rapeseed Sunflowerseed Soya beans 1978 1,230 125 5 1979 1,205 222 22 1980 1,995 307 18 1981 1,999 513 21 1982 2,679 746 31 1983 2,492 977 89 1984 3,477 1,200 156 1985 3,729 1,776 343 1986 EC-10 3,651 2,262 912 EC-12 3,665 3,135 918 19871 EC-10 5,901 2,780 1,440 EC-12 5,911 3,860 1,447 1 Estimated. Note: All figures are in '000 tonnes, and relate to EC-10 except where otherwise stated. Data are from EC Management Committee statistics.
The maximum guarantee quantity systems for rape seed and sunflower seed were introduced in 1986 with EC-10 MGQs of 3.5 million tonnes and 1.7 million tonnes respectively, and with a 5 per cent. limit on price reductions. In 1987, this limit was increased to 10 per cent. and a similar system was introduced for soya beans with an EC-12 MGQ of 1.1 million tonnes.
The European Council agreed that each 1 per cent. excess production of rape seed, sunflower seed or soya beans over respective MGQs of 4.5 (EC-10), 2.0 (EC-10) or 1.7 (EC-12) million tonnes would lead to a 0.45 per cent. price reduction in 1988–89, and to a 0.5 per cent. price reduction in 1989–90 and 1990–91, with no limit on the price reductions.
No detailed assesment has been made of the effect on production or on imports of the new system the primary function of which is to stabilise expenditure. At current world prices and exchange rates full year expenditure relating to these three oil seed MGQs would be stabilised at about 2.6 becu compared to estimated 1987 full year expenditure of 3.5 becu.
19WFor Spain and Portugal it was agreed that an adjustment would be made to the MGQs for rape seed (10,000 tonnes for Spain; 1,000 tonnes for Portugal) and sunflower seed (1.2 million tonnes for Spain; 53,500 tonnes for Portugal) corresponding to those agreed for the EC-10. No extra payments were agreed for Spain or Portugal on oil seeds either within or outside the agricultural part of the budget.