18 October, 2005 - Published 22:24 GMT

Region warned of tough sugar battle

A member of the European parliament has said the battle for adequate compensation for Caribbean sugar farmers from the European Union is going to be difficult.

MEP Glenys Kinnock is in the Caribbean with a delegation of parliamentarians from the European Union and the African Caribbean and Pacific parliamentary assembly.

They have toured sugar cane farms in Guyana and Jamaica to assess the impact that the EU's planned sugar price cuts will have on the industry.

Mrs Kinnock said the proposed cuts are way too steep and would cause social instability and has promised help the region get a better deal.

She told BBC Caribbean Radio that she is not promising any solutions but she will fight for the region's sugar producers.

"I don't give a vain hope at all, I am very pessimistic. I don't say that solutions are imminent or even possible," she said.

"There is a kind of intransigence in parts of the European Union particularly among people working on agriculture towards understanding the implications of this for the sugar protocol countries.

"I feel very anxious about the whole situation and there will be a council of ministers on November 5, and myself and others, we're fighting very hard on this issue," she said.

Compensation

The EU has promised a compensation plan worth 40 million euros for ACP countries, but this has already been criticised by Caribbean farmers as not enough.

"We have this figure of 40 million which is bandied around but to me this is kind of virtual money, because I don't know where it's coming from.

"Nobody is against the reform, we understand absolutely, and no Caribbean country has ever said they don't see the need for reform but what they do say is a cut of 39 percent which is the current proposal is something which for them is unsustainable," she said.

She said some people in the EU have the impression that the ACP farmers are not restructuring and they don't understand the level of investment governments are taking to diversify their industries.

"It is the case that everyone is aware that these changes need to happen but it takes time," she said.

She said she is not sure how successful the fight for more compensation for farmers could be, especially with the upcoming review of the EU's budget.

"I'm searching around with ACP colleagues to try and find more budget neutral ways of funding. The budget of the European Union is currently under review so we don't know how much money there is even, and certainly, at this moment, I cannot predict from where in the budget any of this would come from - even the 40 million euros."

She pledged to keep up the fight for the region's sugar farmers, especially at the upcoming WTO ministerial talks in Hong Kong in December.

"In Cancun (in 2003), the litmus test there was again an ACP issue, it was cotton and in my view, the ACP will galvanise the round, ensuring there is a clear understanding that they are not prepared to allow their sugar dependant countries to be so adversely affected by this proposal; so all is not lost."