The chances that the EU decision to abolish duty-free will be reversed are very remote, despite the Government's campaign on the issue, the EU Transport Commissioner, Mr Neil Kinnock, said yesterday.
On a visit to Dublin, Mr Kinnock told reporters that such a decision could only be taken by a unanimous vote of the EU finance ministers, as it was they who had decided on the abolition in 1991.
Mr Kinnock agreed with a proposal by the Dublin Fianna Fail MEP, Mr Niall Andrews, that the private sector should be encouraged to finance infrastructural projects when EU funding is cut early in the next century.
Mr Andrews said in a statement yesterday that the European Commission "is putting us on notice that post-2006 Ireland will only be receiving 20 per cent of its present allocation of structural funds. We must put structures in place to compensate for the loss of receipts from EU structural funds."
He suggested the establishment by the Government of an EU business forum to look at opportunities presented to the private sector by the loss of EU funds. Such a forum should identify how and in which cases "the private sector can fill the shoes of European structural funds."
Mr Kinnock said the Commission was strongly in favour of involving the private sector in funding infrastructural projects. "There are numerous ways of mobilising private capital to work in partnership with public capital," he said.
These included the introduction of toll roads and other ways of raising revenue to give a return for the investment of private capital.
Mr Kinnock is in Dublin for a series of meetings, as well as to attend Ireland's match against Wales at Lansdowne Road today.
On duty-free he said: "The considered view of the finance ministers is that the maintenance of the single market is essential, that the operation of duty-free impinges on that and that the withdrawal of duty-free would not impinge on freedom of movement."
He agreed that the Minister for Public Enterprise, Mrs O'Rourke, had made progress earlier this week when, with the support of eight other member-states, she persuaded the EU transport ministers to call on the finance ministers to commission a study on the impact of the abolition of dutyfree.
He said that in November 1996 the then minister for finance, Mr Ruairi Quinn, had proposed such a study at a finance ministers' meeting and had received "sort of oral support" from two memberstates.
"It will be interesting to see if the finance council takes a different view," he said, adding that he believed the chances of the necessary unanimity being obtained were "very remote".
The next move takes place in May when the transport ministers' request for a study will be considered by a finance ministers' meeting. Mrs O'Rourke believes that if the finance ministers agree to commission an impact study, it will show that 30,000 to 50,000 of the 140,000 jobs associated with duty-free will be at risk.