HC Deb 08 March 1978 vol 945 cc645-6W
Mr. John Ellis

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on the outcome of the Council of Ministers (Agriculture) meeting in Brussels on 6th and 7th March.

Mr. John Silkin

Together with my hon. Friend the parliamentary secretary, I represented the United Kingdom at this meeting.

The Council discussed the problems raised by the decline in the value of the French franc by comparison with the currencies in the European joint float. It was finally agreed that the green franc be devalued by 1.2 per cent. with effect from 8th March The Commission said that, acting under powers already provided for in the general Council regulation on monetary compensatory amounts (mcas), it would, on an experimental basis, start to calculate mcas for all member States with floating currencies with reference to the market rate during the previous three weeks rather than one week as at present. This experimental system will be used for mcas calculation during the rest of March, and the results will be reported to the next Agricultural Council on 4th-5th April.

The French delegation sought a change in the calculation of pigmeat mcas using the same arguments as I have consistently used in the Council for a prolonged period. I gave it my full support but, again, no decision was taken because of the very firm views of those delegations which would lose from a change in the method of calculation. The discussion will be continued at future Councils.

The Council continued the discussion on common prices for 1978–79 but no agreement was reached. Consequently the Council agreed to extend for one month the marketing years for milk and beef, the products for which new prices normally come into effect at the beginning of April. At my insistence this decision comprehended, contrary to the Commission's proposal, the extension of the FEOGA-financed United Kingdom butter subsidy at its existing level.

The Commission presented to the Council a number of new proposals for in- clusion in this year's farm price package including the suspension of beef inter vention in certain market circumstances; improvements in the non-marketing and conversion premiums for milk; suspension of intervention for skimmed milk powder during the winter months; the provision of 50 million units of account for measures to promote the consumption of butter; and an extension of the list of products eligible for aid under the school milk scheme. These proposals will require detailed examination, but I welcome the general principle underlying them, which is to diminish the importance of intervention and increase the extent to which Community surpluses are sold on the Community's own market.

The Council had a useful first discussion of the Commission's proposed regulation to safeguard the essential functions of the Milk Marketing Boards. I stressed the vital importance for the United Kingdom and for the Community as a whole of enabling the daily delivery of milk to be continued and, therefore, maintaining the high level of consumption of liquid milk in the United Kingdom