European Agriculture Ministers indicated on Tuesday 18 June in Luxembourg that there is still a lot of work to be done before a common position can be found on the post-2020 Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) (see EUROPE 12273/7).
The Romanian Presidency of the Council of the EU presented the EU Council with a report on the state of negotiations on the three regulations relating to the new CAP (strategic plans, common market organisation and horizontal regulation).
European Commissioner Phil Hogan warned that he could not accept a weakening of environmental ambition for the new CAP. "It's not negotiable", he said. He regretted the deletion of certain provisions on aid conditionality and considered that the proposed new performance model already offered sufficient flexibility to Member States.
France supports the Commission's proposal on green architecture and the mandatory nature of eco-regimes.
Germany said that environmental ambition should not be eroded.
Italy welcomed the Romanian Presidency's suggestions for simplifying the rules on green architecture and conditionality. Italy prefers voluntary eco-regimes.
Several Ministers (France, Denmark, Lithuania, Slovakia, Spain...) recalled the need to know the results of the negotiations on the EU's multiannual financial framework (MFF) for 2021-2027 before concluding on the future CAP.
Most delegations welcomed the progress made in the negotiations, but stressed that discussions should continue on several important topics.
Slovakia listed external convergence of aid, capping and conditionality of aid as topics for further discussion.
Belgium said that it did not share the Romanian Presidency's view that the common market organisation (CMO) and horizontal regulations were "stable", a term that would give the impression that an agreement was within reach on this subject. The country said that we must continue to work on the concept of true farmer, green architecture, cross compliance. On this last point, all farmers must respect it, even small ones, Brussels said.
An inevitable transition period. France referred to a transition period and rules on the matter to be discussed "as soon as possible". This delegation defended, for the period 2021-2027, an agricultural budget "maintained for the EU Twenty-Seven". France supports the Commission's proposal on green architecture and the mandatory nature of eco-regimes.
Slovakia, Malta and the Czech Republic, in particular, have called for an increase in the possible limit of coupled support, while Germany and Denmark have criticised this type of aid as distorting competition. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)