Ahern urged to defend CAP at Brussels summit
The ICMSA said Mr Ahern has a strong mandate following the Nice Treaty referendum to call on member-state governments to pay for the EU enlargement process.
ICOS, the umbrella body for the country's co-ops, said Irish farmers had voted Yes in the Nice referendum on the basis that the Government would defend the CAP, and its budget.
And the IFA warned that farmers in the EU would not stay in business if CAP direct payments were not secured for the future.
The calls were made as EU leaders gathered in Brussels for a two-day meeting to discuss enlargement and how it is to be funded.
ICMSA president Pat O'Rourke said the Taoiseach must reject any proposal that would lead to a reduction in supports or the re-nationalisation of the CAP in order to fund enlargement.
He said he would expect Mr Ahern to reject, even to the extent of using the veto, any proposal to fund enlargement on the back of the agri-food sector.
ICMSA has called on the Government to seek guarantees that no proposals will be agreed for the post-2006 period that will undermine the future of the CAP.
Mr O'Rourke, in a letter to the Taoiseach, said it would be totally unacceptable to Irish farmers if there was any decision to place a budgetary ceiling on the CAP.
"For the period to 2006, the budgetary provision of 12.4 billion is available to meet the financial obligations of enlargement and the transitional application of the CAP to the new member states.
"No proposals must be agreed that will result in reductions to existing and future farm supports in order to fund enlargement," he said.
ICOS also urged the Taoiseach to defend the CAP budget and not agree to a premature reform at the EU summit.
ICOS president Dessie Boylan said it is unacceptable to ask Irish and EU farmers to reduce their incomes to provide budget savings to fund enlargement. He called on the Taoiseach to reject efforts to make agriculture pay for enlargement, when it is other sectors of the economy, such as manufacturing and services, that are likely to gain from the process.
