The timing could scarcely have been better; astens of thousands of farmers headed to the polling stations yesterday, the Minister for Agriculture, Mr Yates, announced that the Egyptian authorities had agreed to restore the live cattle trade with Egypt.
The ban was first imposed in January because of the increased incidence of BSE.
Fianna Fail was irritated by Mr Yates announcement; its spokesman, Mr Joe Walsh, described it as "belated, blatantly political, and a desperate attempt to shore up the farming vote for the Rainbow". Mr Yates will not be unduly fussed by this criticism; all governments manipulate the release of good news for maximum electoral benefit. In this case, political fortune appears to have smiled on Mr Yates. It has been clear for several weeks that the political leadership in Egypt was keen to restore imports but any announcement was delayed, pending further veterinary checks. Fortunately for Mr Yates and the Government, approval from the veterinary authorities came in time for it to be announced on yesterday's midday news.
In truth, most farmers will not be too worried about any political kudos that might flow from the agreement; the bottom line is that an export market with the potential to generate £200 million has been revived. The impact of this is already evident at the cattle markets: after a long period of poor demand, prices increased yesterday as word of the announcement filtered through. It may be that there is more good news on the way. The Egyptian agreement, concluded after the rigorous checking by the country's well regarded veterinary service, may yet smooth the way for a full restoration of exports to Libya.
The Government certainly has a good case for a resumption of the Libyan trade. And for a restoration of the export market with Iran and a lifting of the partial Russian ban, which still affects eight counties. It can point to a clear trend which indicates an appreciable drop in the level of BSE: only three cases were recorded last month, compared to a total of 11 cases in January. The case for a concerted diplomatic effort to build on the success in lifting the Egyptian ban and to protect a vital national interest - could hardly be more clear cut.
There is also a need to take the longer view. The use of the EU's export refund scheme and the intervention system can help to cushion farmers from the fall off in beef consumption. But the drift towards more liberal trade practices, confirmed in the GATT agreement on world trade, underlines how these schemes represent no more than a temporary palliative. The longer term task is to rebuild consumer confidence in the Irish beef product and to guarantee the containment and the eradication of the disease as swiftly as possible. Irish agriculture must absorb the painful lesson of the BSE crisis: the needs of the customer must always be paramount.