Dillon warns Government not to budge on nitrates

THE IFA president, Mr John Dillon, has told Ministers Dick Roche and Mary Coughlan that the Government must not give even an inch on the Irish Nitrates Action Programme, which was formally submitted to the Commission last October, and which the Commission has rejected.

But the European Commission holds a strong hand in discussions on the Nitrates Directive, says Mr Michael O'Donovan, principal officer in the Department of Agriculture and Food.

He points out that substantial fines are not the only worry, if Ireland does not comply with the directive.