MP DEMANDS FURTHER PROTECTION FOR BANANA INDUSTRY

Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Wednesday December 16 2009

SOCIALIST Party regional MP Blas Trujillo called for transport subsidies for Canarian bananas on Wednesday after the EU agreed to reduce import tariffs for Latin American nations.

by James Tweedie

His comments came after European Union struck a deal with Latin American nations on Tuesday December 15 to lower the tariff on imported bananas.

The tariff will fall from the current €176 per tonne to €148 early next year, with further gradual reductions towards €117 per tonne in 2017.

But regional parliament member for Gran Canaria Mr Trujillo said that the “unexpected tariff cut created the conditions for available EU subsidies for the transport of agricultural goods to be applied immediately.

He said: “This is the way out and the solution before the lower tariff on extra-community bananas.”

In addition to EU tariffs, Canarian bananeros or banana-growers are already protected by special regional measures, which along with lower VAT rates have resulted in the region being denied full EU member status.

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