Sir Geoffrey warns about future exports

Press, 29 April 1987, Page 3

Sir Geoffrey warns about future exports

By

BRENDON BURNS

in Wellington The warning by the British Foreign Secretary, Sir Geoffrey Howe, about future New Zealand access for exports to Europe continued to echo in Wellington yesterday. Sir Geoffrey left for Fiji on Monday evening after meeting Cabinet Ministers and publicly saying that New Zealand’s case" for continued access was less likely to prevail because of the nuclear-ship ban. The Opposition’s associate spokesman on agriculture, Mr Denis Marshall (Rangitikei), said yesterday that New Zealand had to decide whether it was with Europe or against it.

Mr Marshall said the Government should not underestimate the strength of the British farm lobby. In the past, farm leaders had supported New Zealand, par-

ticularly for butter and lamb exports to Britain.

"Now that mood has changed and with politicians speaking publicly against New Zealand it will not be long before that starts to impact on British Government policy,” he said. Sir Geoffrey had reaffirmed that the Conservative Government would continue to do its best next year when butter quotas for the European Community were renegotiated. But he warned that it was a fact of life that New Zealand’s cause was less likely to prevail with its anti-nuclear policy in place. Sir Geoffrey’s warning did spell out, however, that continued access for New Zealand would be difficult, even if the nuclear-ship ban did not exist.

He noted that British dairy farmers were being asked to take cuts in production this year almost equal to New Zealand’s total butter exports to the European Community.

The Minister of Overseas Trade, Mr Moore, emphasised this difficulty yesterday. “Further butter negotiations are due next year and with the Community living in the shadow of a million-tonne butter mountain the negotiations will not be easy,” he said.

Government sources said yesterday that while Sir Geoffrey had put his case vigorously to the Government, it was done diplomatically. A far more abrasive line had been taken a year ago by the visiting junior Foreign Minister, Baroness Young, sources said.