HC Deb 21 November 1995 vol 267 cc72-3W
Mr. Patrick Thompson

To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will make a statement on the outcome of the EU Industry Council held in Brussels on 6 and 7 November. [1976]

Mr. Eggar

The Council adopted resolutions on the following issues: the role of small and medium-sized enterprises—SMEs—in the process of technological innovation; the industrial aspects of the information society; and the importance of the competitiveness of the European mechanical engineering industry. The Council also agreed conclusions on the following topics: the links between industrial competitiveness and business services; industrial co-operation with other regions and third countries; the feasibility of a European secondary capital market for SMEs; and the interaction between competition policy and industrial competitiveness. The Council reached political agreement, pending examination of the European Parliament's opinion, on a draft Council decision on an action programme to strengthen EU industrial competitiveness.

The Commission made oral presentations on the work of the Commission research-industry task forces and on a forthcoming communication on the promotion of quality as a factor in improving industrial competitiveness. It presented a communication on the impact of international developments on the EU textile and clothing sector.

Political agreement was reached on the text of a Council regulation implementing OECD rules on aid to shipbuilding, with a qualified majority in favour of extending existing Community rules for up to nine months—that is, 1 October 1996—if the OECD agreement had not come into force by then.

On steel, the Commission made a presentation on the monitoring of article 95 cases. I welcomed the Commission's assurance that there would be no resort to article 95 in the future. I shared the Commission's concern about the expiry of the deadline for the 500,000 tonnes of capacity reductions in Italy. Italy promised to provide a new proposal on how this would be achieved within the following two weeks. There was a brief discussion on the Commission's proposal to amend the environmental provisions of the steel aid code.

The most difficult issue on the agenda was the Irish article 95 request for Council assent to state aid to be made in relation to Irish Steel. We have serious concerns about the principle of further state aid to the steel industry. This request caused particular difficulties for the United Kingdom and Luxembourg, where steel plants compete with Irish Steel and where jobs could consequently be put at risk by the injection of the proposed aid. Some progress was made towards formulating possible conditions which could be attached to any aid, but it did not prove possible to reach agreement at the meeting. It was agreed that further discussions would take place.

Finally, under other business, there was a short discussion on the follow-up to the Molitor report on administrative simplification. There was also a brief exchange of views on the Commission's plans to propose a strategic environmental assessment directive, which would amend directive 85/337/EEC. I warned that it was essential not to undermine the competitiveness of key industrial sectors through the imposition of excessive regulatory burdens.

No votes were taken at the Council.