Plaid minister attends EU talks

Welsh rural affairs minister Elin Jones has become the first Plaid Cymru member of a UK delegation to attend European talks.

The nationalist minister, part of the coalition administration in Cardiff, was on Monday attending a meeting of EU agriculture ministers.

The talks, currently chaired by the Portuguese government, were set to focus on reform of the common agricultural policy.

Jones said she would "consult with farming and countryside interests in Wales to seek views on any proposals which come forward".

And she pledged to "remain fully engaged at London and EU levels to ensure that the needs of Wales and Welsh farming are fully recognised".

Northern Ireland's agriculture and rural development minister Michelle Gildernew also welcomed the proposals.

"Although commissioner Fischer Boel has made clear that this is a health check rather than a full blown reform, the proposals cover a number of significant issues for the industry here, such as proposed increases in compulsory modulation, how to achieve an orderly phasing out of milk quotas and simplification of the single farm payment system," she said.

Monday's discussions were also due to focus on a draft regulation temporarily suspending import duties for cereals, as well as reform of the wine sector.

An exchange of views on genetically modified organisms was also on the agenda.

On Tuesday the EU ministers were set to hold talks on tackling unregulated fishing, and on progress with the simplification of the common fisheries policy.

A political agreement on a recovery plan for bluefin tuna in the Eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean is also expected, and the Council is set to adopt a regulation harmonising the ban on trade in dog and cat hair.