Tobacco growing is of historical importance in the Canary Islands.

In addition, to maintain the manufacture of tobacco products, imports into the Canary Islands of raw and semi-manufactured tobacco should continue to be exempt from customs duty, up to an annual limit of 20 000 tonnes of stripped raw tobacco equivalent.

But who in Parliament can fail to recognise that by giving in to the diktat of the United States, in the guise of the WTO, the European Union is supporting future unemployment? At some point in the long term, 35 000 people in the Canary Islands will be made unemployed, and 30 000 in the West Indies.

(9) The sheep and goat sector receives support through a supplementary premium granted to producers in the Canary Islands for heavy lambs. This measure has made it possible to develop local production, which is of social, economic and environmental importance because this activity is concentrated in the most disadvantaged areas of the islands where no other alternatives exist. This measure should be continued.

(11) The area aid scheme for fruit and edible vegetables, roots and tubers, flowers and live plants has proved unsuitable, especially because of the slowness and complexity of procedures and the way the proposed aid was structured. Lessons should be learned from the encouraging results of the Poseidom reform in that sector, and marketing and processing aid should be envisaged with a view to supplying the market in the Canary Islands. Such aid must help local produce compete with products from elsewhere on high-growth markets, better satisfy the requirements of consumers and new distribution channels, improve the productivity of farms and ...[+++] upgrade the quality of products. The marketing of these products, both fresh and processed, should be continued and they should be promoted on the Community market. An economic study will help to refine the structure of the sector.

1. Aid shall be granted for the fruits, edible vegetables, roots and tubers, flowers and live plants listed in Chapters 6, 7 and 8 of the Combined Nomenclature harvested in the Canary Islands and intended to supply the market in the Canary Islands.