Addressing the European Parliament’s Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development on Wednesday 19 March, EU Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Christophe Hansen said that the package of measures to simplify the common agricultural policy (CAP) rules, scheduled for next April, would cover the conditionality of aid, including certain provisions on ‘good agricultural and environmental condition’ (GAEC).
The commissioner will present a second package by the end of the year (see EUROPE 13566/10), which will target “environmental requirements outside the CAP that are causing problems” for the agricultural sector (see EUROPE 13603/19).
In mid-May 2024, the EU Council approved the regulation aimed at relaxing certain CAP rules (see EUROPE 13408/20). The relaxations, aimed in part at responding to concerns raised by EU farmers, concerned five GAEC standards, the amendment of CAP strategic plans and exemptions from aid controls and penalties.
Regarding the post-2027 agricultural budget, Mr Hansen told MEPs that he intended to fight to preserve “strong income support” and “strong support” for rural areas. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)