Ireland could lose 10,000 jobs and over €1 billion could be wiped off agricultural output in the World Trade negotiations if the Government continues its politically correct approach of not defending Ireland's trading interests, a farm leader has warned.

Mr Pat O'Rourke, president of the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers' Association (ICMSA), said the threats posed by the WTO negotiations were not being fully appreciated by all Government Ministers or the trade unions whose members' jobs were under threat.

He said it would seem that "defending our agricultural and food market is not at present politically correct".He was concerned that our trading interests were "taking second place to our responsibilities to the developing economies".

Mr O'Rourke said the consequences for the 140,000 farm families were that their income could be further cut as farm prices fell towards world price levels.

"The WTO negotiations at the ministerial meeting in Cancún pose an unprecedented and major threat to the income of all involved in the Irish agri-food sector," he said.

"ICMSA is concerned that our trading interests are taking second place to our responsibilities to the developing economies. It would seem that defending our agricultural and food market is not at present politically correct.

"The Irish economy will lose by allowing greater market access to the EU and curtailing, if not effectively abolishing, export subsidies," said Mr O'Rourke.

A key point in the ICMSA submission to Government was that there must be no further reduction in import tariffs. If this were to happen, EU support prices would be undermined and prices would fall towards world prices.

Meanwhile, World Bank president Mr James Wolfensohn said yesterday he expected no major breakthrough at the talks in Cancún even as senior ministers tried to find common ground on farm subsides. WTO members have missed almost every deadline they set for themselves when they launched talks on a global trade deal 22 months ago and Mr Wolfensohn had only modest hopes.