§ Mr. David PorterTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what was the outcome of the Agriculture Council held in Luxembourg on 25 and 26 April; and if she will make a statement.
§ Mrs. Gillian ShephardThis meeting of the Council, at which I represented the United Kingdom, again discussed the Commission's proposals for farm support prices for 1994–95 and related measures. I made it clear that I continued to have a number of objections to the proposals, in particular to the suggested 1 per cent. cut in milk quotas. No decisions were reached and the Council will return to the subject at its May meeting.
There was a brief discussion, initiated by the German Minister, on bovine spongiform encephalopathy. The Agricultural Commissioner, Mr. Steichen, supported my view that current control measures fully safeguarded public health. The Commissioner and several member states also endorsed my insistence that any further measures must be consistent with scientific advice. He confirmed that it would be unacceptable for a member state to take unilateral measures which interfered with infra-Community trade.
The Council adopted a proposal to continue assistance to transporters of Greek fruit and vegetables affected by the war in ex-Yugoslavia. Denmark voted against and France abstained.