EC FARM MINISTERS END MEETING WITHOUT PRICE ACCORD
European Community farm ministers
plunged the bloc into a crisis today by ending a marathon
negotiation on 1987/88 farm prices without agreement.
    Their chairman, Belgian Paul de Keersmaeker, told a press
conference this morning ministers gave a majority vote in
favour of all aspects of an EC Commission compromise proposal
introduced on Tuesday.
    However, the minority against the crucial plan for a tax on
vegetable and marine oils and fats was big enough to block its
adoption, and British Agriculture Minister John MacGregor said
other aspects of the proposals are likely to be vetoed.
    MacGregor said the meeting foundered in part because of an
implicit indication from the West Germans that they were
prepared to veto two other aspects of the package, the future
monetary compensatory amounts system and proposals directly
connected with common prices.
    De Keersmaeker said he will now consider when ministers
should be called for further talks, but diplomats said the
outcome of the meeting makes it almost certain the major
outstanding issues will be referred to EC heads of government
who hold a summit meeting on June 29 and 30 in Brussels.
    A Commission official said the Commission will work out
stopgap measures which it will bring in on July 1 if the
deadlock persists. These will concern products such as cereals,
colza, sugar, beef and milk, for which there would otherwise be
no legal EC regulations from that date.
    Trade sources expect these will include a seven pct cut in
guaranteed prices for most cereals.
    The official said the measures "will take into account the
situation in the market, but also the EC's severe budgetary
situation."
    The Commission was expecting an EC budget deficit this year
of almost six billion dlrs even before it presented its
compromise, which would have cost almost one billion more. It
estimates the oils and fats tax would bring in 2.3 billion dlrs
in a full year.
    Diplomats said Britain, West Germany and the Netherlands
maintained their opposition to the tax despite Commission
attempts to persuade them it would not unfairly hit exports
from countries outside the EC.
    They added Denmark did not formally state its final
position but was understood to remain against.
 REUTER
