To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make it his policy to propose environmental conditions into the beef protocol of the Lomé agreement; and if he will make a statement.

[holding answer 19 February 1991]: When the fourth Lomé convention takes effect (ratification is required by all member states in the Community and two thirds of the ACP countries), the provisions of the beef protocol will allow certain ACP countries to import beef into the EC at reduced levy, subject to national quotas. As environmental concerns are covered in articles 33–41 of the convention, the beef protocol is already subject to them.