HL Deb 28 February 1994 vol 552 c64WA
Viscount Waverley

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Why they failed to support the European Commission proposal for technical and financial aid which formed part of the package put to the African, Caribbean and Pacific countries by the United Kingdom Presidency in 1992.

Baroness Chalker of Wallasey

The UK worked hard under its Presidency to negotiate a banana regime which was fair to the ACP. We believe that the new single market arrangements represented a reasonable outcome. We did not support the compensation proposal made by the Commission because we believed that the substantial amount of income support which it included risked perpetuating an inefficient system, especially if unaccompanied by concerted efforts to put the industry on a viable basis. There are funds for financial and technical assistance, which could be used to strengthen the industry, in the 1994 EC budget.