HC Deb 28 October 1992 vol 212 cc683-4W
Mrs. Dunwoody

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on the relationship between the single market for bananas and(a) the Lome convention and (b) GATT negotiations in the Uruguay round.

Mr. Curry

The Government are determined that the arrangements for the single market in bananas should meet its Lomé convention obligations, whilst being compatible with a successful outcome to the GATT Uruguay round.

Mrs. Dunwoody

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will list the division of licences on the single market for bananas amongst(a) Latin American producers, (b) the Association of Caribbean Producers and (c) European Community producers.

Mr. Curry

Negotiations are continuing on single market arrangements for bananas. No agreement has yet been reached. The Commission proposal would require licensing of all fruit from non-EC and non-ACP sources and of imports from ACP origins that exceed traditional volumes of trade. The detailed provisions for licence allocation are complex but would broadly distribute 66.5 per cent. of the total on the basis of past trade in non-EC and non-ACP fruit; 30 per cent. would be available to operators who undertook to market a related quantity of EC or ACP fruit; 3.5 per cent. would be available to newcomers to the trade.

Mrs. Dunwoody

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement concerning the level of banana exports to the European Community in 1993 from(a) Caribbean exporters and (b) Latin American exporters.

Mr. Curry

The precise level of banana exports to the European Community in 1993 will depend on many factors. Negotiations on the bananas dossier are continuing and it is therefore not possible, at this stage, to forecast the level of imports in 1993 from either the Caribbean or Latin America.

Mrs. Dunwoody

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food to what extent(a) Caribbean, (b) Latin American and (c) European Community producers will have access to banana markets under the single market system.

Mr. Curry

Negotiations are continuing on single market arrangements for bananas. The Commission's proposals would apply a quota to all imports of bananas from non-EC and non-ACP sources, including Latin America; non-traditional volumes from ACP sources would also be covered; EC and ACP supplies would continue free of duty; all others would face a 20 per cent. duty. No agreement has so far been reached regarding the single market arrangements.

Mrs. Dunwoody

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what plans Her Majesty's Government have for the maintenance of an orderly market at the start of 1993 if the single market for bananas is not fully in place.

Mr. Curry

The Government are working hard to secure agreement on a common organisation of the market in bananas by the end of this year. We shall be discussing with the Commission and other member states what arrangements may be necessary at the start of 1993 in the light of developments in the negotiations.

Mrs. Dunwoody

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what are the responsibilities of Her Majesty's Government to Commonwealth banana exporters as a result of the Lomé convention.

Mr. Curry

The Lomé convention imposes obligations on all EC member states. In particular, article 1 of protocol 5 of that convention statesIn respect of its banana exports to the Community markets, no ACP State shall be placed, as regards access to its traditional markets and its advantages on those markets, in a less favourable situation than in the past or at present.

Mrs. Dunwoody

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement concerning the establishment of a quota system under the single market for bananas.

Mr. Curry

The Commission has proposed a system for the common organisation of the Community banana market based on an absolute quota on imports from non-EC and non-ACP sources, and on ACP supplies above traditional levels. This proposal provides the basis for the negotiations between member states that are currently under way.