Farmers vent fury over CAP reform

THOUSANDS of farmers yesterday focused their fury on the European Union Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson.

Bringing the centre of Dublin to a standstill, they claimed he is selling out Irish and other European farmers in the world trade talks.

A group of farmers also staged a 24-hour sit-in at the European Commission offices in Dublin. The men emerged from their overnight protest as ‘The Mandelson Ten’ and were hailed by 5,000 other farmers, who filled the full length of Molesworth Street, in the biggest Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) protest since the celebrated ‘tractorcade’ nearly three years ago.

Farmers from all over the country carried eviction scene placards with Mr Mandelson’s picture superimposed. They warned that his proposals to slash farm produce import tariffs by 46% would decimate Irish agriculture and they repeatedly chanted “out, out, out” in response to his name.

Martin Territ, European Commission director in Ireland, said agreement on world trade was essential for Irish prosperity, and the EU proposals were fully within its negotiating mandate.

“The union’s offer is not a giveaway. Other countries will have to reform their trade-distorting export programmes. So there is no question of opening up the floodgates to cheap imports. There are a series of strict conditions to our offer,” he said.

More than 20 siren-sounding tractors, orange warning lights flashing on their cab roofs, a trailer load of sugar beet, a combine harvester, a milk tanker and a livestock truck later led a march to the offices of the Department of the Taoiseach, passing the Department of Agriculture and Food offices on the way.

Farmers say they accepted reform of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) in 2003 on the clear understanding that would be the EU’s contribution to the world trade talks and would secure the future of family farming until 2013.

“The new CAP is not yet one year in existence and politicians are back again, breaking their word,” said IFA president John Dillon, calling on Taoiseach Bertie Ahern to put the Government’s position on the line and to stop the sell out of Irish farm families.

“If Mandelson gets his way, Irish farm income will be cut by €800 million. That’s a 35% cut. It would bring the average family farm income to about €10,000 a year. That’s €4.80 per hour which is far below the minimum wage of €7.65,” he said.

Mr Dillon said €1.2 billion would be cut off the value of Irish farm output and 50,000 jobs would be lost in farming, the food industry and farm services, devastating Ireland’s rural economy.

Irish Co-operative Organisation Society president Padraig Gibbons and Macra president Colm Markey joined Mr Dillon and other IFA leaders on the platform. Meanwhile politicians mingled with the crowd, who took the opportunity to remind them that election time was looming, and not just in the IFA.

“I think the farmers’ goose is cooked. Mandy is doing what he has to do,” remarked one Dublin taxi driver, as the IFA men and women dispersed.

Mr Dillon, who hopes to meet with Taoiseach Bertie Ahern next week, obviously disagrees, as he prepares to lead the 85,000 IFA members into a robust defence of the CAP in the final two months of his presidency.