Brussels, 08/04/2014 (Agence Europe) - On Monday 7 April, the agriculture committee rejected all resolutions raising objections to ten common agricultural policy (CAP) reform-related delegated acts tabled by the Commission on 11 March.
In order to avoid rejection of some of the texts on the delegated acts implementing CAP reform, the European Commission decided to increase (when calculating the number of hectares of surface areas of ecological interest, one of the factors considered in the greening of agricultural aid) the weightings for areas cultivated with catch crops and nitrogen-fixing crops (see EUROPE 11052 and 11042).
Following the green light from agriculture MEPs, the committee will recommend that the Parliament declares, during its April plenary sitting in Strasbourg, that it has no objections to the ten delegated acts. However, an objection to any delegated act could still be tabled by at least 40 MEPs or a single political group. To reject a delegated act, an absolute majority within the Chamber would be required.
Article 290 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU allows the European legislator (European Parliament and Council) to delegate to the Commission the power to adopt non-legislative acts of a general scope, which supplement or amend certain non-essential elements in a legislative act. The legal acts thus adopted by the Commission are known as “delegated acts”.
The Council is expected to approve the delegated acts soon, there being no majority of member states to reject any of these acts. (LC)