Over a working lunch in Brussels on Tuesday 15 November, EU agriculture ministers discussed the future of the common agricultural policy (CAP) (see EUROPE 11661).
Debate centred on a question from the Slovak Presidency of the Council: on what parts of the current CAP should political discussions focus in order to deliver responses that address present challenges?
A number of delegations, like that of the Netherlands, wanted farmers to be at the centre of the discussions.
Others highlighted the need for adequate funding in order to be able to put in place a policy to deal with numerous political issues. Following the discussions, the Presidency said the new CAP had to be “balanced, simple, flexible, more environmental, more modern and market oriented” and that it must improve the situation of current farmers, while supporting the generations.
Agriculture Commissioner Phil Hogan pointed out that the CAP after 2020 was a matter that demanded continuous work within the Commission and the Council. He said that the EU already had some interesting ideas ahead of forthcoming discussions.
Meeting informally at the château de Chambord in France, the agriculture ministers of 20 countries reaffirmed their commitment to the CAP (see EUROPE 11615). (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)