No. 178 NAI TSCH/3/S15011/A

Memorandum for Government by the Department of Agriculture
'European Agricultural Community (Farm Pool Plan)'
(6/11/137)

Dublin, 4 March 1953

  1. In 1950 the Dutch and French Governments made public certain proposals for the unification of agricultural markets in Europe. These proposals were very similar and were designed to correspond in the agricultural sphere to the Schumann Plan for coal and steel. Early in 1951 the French Government submitted an outline of the French Farm Pool Plan to the Council of Europe. The Plan, as then envisaged, was to be applied initially to wheat, sugar, dairy produce and wine. The objective was to establish a single market in Western Europe to be achieved by:-
    1. abolition of quotas;
    2. a common export price;
    3. the possible abolition of Customs tariffs;
    4. the establishment of a Supra-national Authority to supervise and direct the market.
  1. In March 1951 the Council of Europe asked its Special Committee for Agriculture to study the French Plan. A Majority Report of the Committee issued in May recommended the setting up of a Supra-national Authority to regulate agricultural production and marketing in Western Europe. The Authority would be in a position to make recommendations to Governments for the making of laws and collection of taxes and could take steps to break down all barriers to the free exchange of agricultural goods, fix prices of goods in intra-European trade and control the import of agricultural products from countries outside the jurisdiction of the Authority. The Report was considered by the Council in December, 1951, and it was agreed that a conference of experts should be convened to prepare a draft treaty instituting a European Agricultural Authority on the basis of the principles contained in the Report.
  2. As a next step, the French Government convened in Paris from 25th to 28th March, 1952, a preliminary meeting at Ministerial level to consider arrangements for the Conference suggested by the Council of Europe. The meeting was attended by fifteen countries (Austria, Belgium, Britain, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and Turkey) all of which except Sweden, Switzerland and Ireland were represented by Ministers. Ireland was represented by the Ambassador at Paris. France, the Netherlands, Austria, Western Germany, Greece, Italy, Turkey and Luxembourg appeared to be generally in favour of integration of European agricultural economies. Denmark and Belgium, while not opposing the basic idea of co-ordinated agricultural production and marketing, expressed doubts about a Supra-national Authority. The remaining countries (Sweden, Switzerland, Norway, Britain and Ireland) questioned the feasibility of achieving a common European market for agriculture and expressed grave doubt as to their ability to participate in an agricultural community under the control of a Supra-national Authority.
  3. The meeting appointed a Preparatory Working Party to prepare material for the proposed Conference to be held in due course and drew up the following Agenda for the Conference:-
    1. Examination of the conclusions of the Preparatory Working Party.
    2. Method of organising the European agricultural markets and methods of unifying those markets.
    3. Structure and powers of the bodies necessary to carry out functions of organisation and unification provided for.
    4. Links to be established between the European Agricultural Community and any countries which might be unable fully to participate in it but which might agree to associate themselves with it.
    5. The relations to be established between the European Agricultural Community and countries which are neither full members nor associate members.
  1. The Working Party and its three sub-groups completed their investigations early in January, 1953. They did not produce any specific proposals for a Supra-national Authority but their commodity studies covered a wide field and they have issued detailed reports on seventeen groups of agricultural products. They have recommended that the products which should be considered by the Conference as the original subject of European agricultural integration should be cereals, tobacco, fruit and vegetables, sugar, livestock and meat, dairy produce and timber. In selecting these products the Working Party was influenced by the relative economic importance of the commodities in Europe, their significance in intra-European trade, dependence on outside areas for supplies and the special importance of some of the commodities to certain countries.
  2. The French Government, acting on behalf of the Preliminary Conference held in March, 1952, has now arranged a Plenary Conference of member Governments of OEEC for the 16th March in Paris. The Agenda for the Plenary Conference is as indicated at paragraph 4 above.
  3. The objective of the proposed European Agricultural Community is the ultimate rationalisation of European agriculture in a common market to be achieved by the gradual reduction and eventual abolition of customs duties and other protective restrictions and by increasing specialisation of production. It is clear that such a programme must create grave problems particularly for high cost producers.
  4. The British have already indicated that it is highly improbable that they would participate fully in a European Agricultural Community. If Britain were so to participate, our present advantages in the British market in Customs preference, linked prices and preferential quotas would be diminished or disappear. In the less improbable event that Britain remained outside the European Agricultural Community, but, for political reasons, adopted some position of association with it, the combined negotiating power of its members would be considerably enhanced to our disadvantage. The proposal, far from giving this country any advantage in the Continental market, may well have the effect of reducing our share in that market below its present exiguous level through the increased security and wider market it would give the Dutch and the Danes.
  5. Despite the various problems which the proposal would create for most national Governments, there are nevertheless strong political considerations in favour of agricultural integration particularly on the part of those countries which have already established the Coal and Steel Community. The movement towards European unification is being vigorously encouraged by the new United States administration. In the circumstances, practical steps in the direction of an Agricultural Community are likely to be taken by the member countries of the Coal and Steel Community. While the Minister for Agriculture1 would see grave objection to participation by this country in a European Agricultural Community he feels, in view of the implications, that we should be represented at the forthcoming Conference so that the position of Ireland could be stated and the extent of any real support for the project appraised. The Minister therefore proposes that an Irish delegation should attend the Conference and he seeks the direction of the Government as to:-
    1. Whether he himself should lead a delegation comprising officers of his Department and members of the Embassy in Paris – practically all countries attending the Conference are likely to be represented by their Ministers for Agriculture or to have other Ministerial representation – or
    2. Whether the Irish Ambassador in Paris should lead a delegation comprising officers of the Department of Agriculture and of the Embassy. (The Department of External Affairs has indicated that if the Ambassador is to lead, he should be assisted by officers of the Department of Agriculture because of the nature of the issues involved).
  1. Leaders of delegations will no doubt be expected to indicate their general attitude on the issues raised by the Agenda (see paragraph 4). The Minister for Agriculture is of the opinion that no useful purpose would be served by disguising the Government’s misgivings about the Farm Pool Plan; and that it should be made clear that Ireland would not become a party to it. He feels, however, that the Irish delegation might preface its remarks by expressing the Government’s general interest in the expansion of European agriculture and its support of co-operative action in appropriate spheres (particularly in technical matters) between European countries towards this end. The delegation could go on to indicate that the Irish Government are unable nevertheless to accept the thesis that the agricultural unification of Western Europe is economically or socially feasible and that furthermore, the Government feel that no Supra-national Authority could give to farming communities the assurance and confidence which they could hope to obtain from National Governments. The Irish delegation might also express apprehension lest a too hasty advance in the direction of the Pool’s objectives might have dangerous technical, economic and social repercussions on Western Europe generally. The Minister for Agriculture also requests the Government’s approval for an expression of views on those lines by the Irish delegation at the Conference.
  2. The Departments of External Affairs, Industry and Commerce and Finance have been consulted and agree with the terms of the Memorandum.2

1 Thomas Walsh.

2 See No. 180.



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