To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on the basis for maintaining the European Union banana import regime; and when he expects the publication of the arbitrator's report on the matter. [79159]

The EU's banana regime is designed to meet both our commitments to African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries under the Lomé Convention, Protocol 5 in particular, and our World Trade Organisation (WTO) obligations.Reports from both the WTO arbitrator and the Dispute Settlement Panel were published on 12 April and copies have been placed in the Library of the House.