MEP tells European Commission to 'wake up and smell the cane'

During a debate in the European Parliament in Strasbourg yesterday evening on ‘current management of the sugar sector’, the UK Independence Party’s agriculture spokesman, Stuart Agnew MEP has excoriated the European Commission for its contradictory policy decisions on employment and sugar tariffs.

He openly criticised European Council President Van Rompuy and European Commission President, Barroso about their speeches at the recent ‘Jobs for Europe Conference’ acknowledging the extreme seriousness of employment in EU member states, pointing out that neither of them mentioned “the fact that Iceland, Norway and Switzerland (all non-EU countries) have higher employment rates than any EU state, even the mighty Germany.”

He said that Van Rompuy and Barroso’s “words about employment are not matched by their actions, one of which is to raise tariffs against imported raw cane sugar. This restriction of supply is a direct cause of lost jobs in the cane sugar refining sector.” Mr Agnew pointed out that these tariffs are based upon “hopelessly inaccurate sugar forecasts made by the Commission in 2005.”

European Commissioner for Trade, Karel De Gucht, also attracted strong criticism from Mr Agnew for his recent enthusiasm about the importance and potential of deepening the EU’s trade with third countries. “Restricting sugar imports does seem a strange way to increase trade with them!”

He concluded his speech by reminding the Commission about the House of Lords’ enquiry into the EU sugar regime, which released its findings last week. “The very fact that they should even deem such an enquiry necessary, should ring alarm bells and I hope that their very critical conclusions will force the Commission to wake up and smell the cane!”