Brussels, 11/12/2009 (Agence Europe) - The French fisheries minister announced on the evening of Thursday 10 December that, “in the course of the next few days”, he would begin the procedure to claw back aid paid to fishermen between 2004 and 2006 which the European Commission has judged illegal and demanded be recovered.
Since June 2008, the Commission has demanded that French fishermen repay monies received from the FPAP, the Fund for the Prevention of Fisheries Vagaries, which came to known as the “diesel fund”. It was set up between November 2004 and January 2006, and allowed fishermen to buy diesel at lower than market prices which had rocketed. €80 million worth of aid was paid out to fishermen.
A French Fisheries Ministry press release says that “the government will do all it can to limit the impact on the enterprises concerned,” giving due consideration to each individual situation and continuing discussions with the Commission “to limit as far as possible the economic consequences of the procedure”. The ministry says “two thirds of enterprises” which received aid will not be required to pay anything back. “The de minimis regime allows aid of up to a maximum of €30,000 per enterprise to be paid legally and in compliance with the market,” the press release says. The ministry does not indicate how much will be recovered. For those who will be required to reimburse the aid received, “the procedure will be progressive and individualised”.
French fruit and vegetable producers find themselves in the same situation. The Commission is calling for the reimbursement of €330 million worth of aid paid out between 1992 and 2002. With interest added, this comes to a total of €500 million. France, however, is challenging this figure, and discussions with Brussels are continuing. This demand provoked an outcry among farmers who rejected it out of hand. (L.C./transl.rt)