On Tuesday 15 July, the think tank Farm Europe criticised European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s desire to cut the budget for the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), “at a time when Europe needs more than ever a strong CAP to help its farmers” (see EUROPE 13680/3).
The think tank points out that the CAP has already suffered “a serious disinvestment shock” in recent years, due to inflation. This would leave a shortfall of almost two years’ direct payments over the period 2021-2027. For the period 2028-2034, €535 billion would be needed to restore the CAP budget to its 2020 level, and €411 billion to maintain the 2027 level. However, estimates suggest that the CAP budget for 2028-2034, proposed on Wednesday 16 July, will be 10% lower than for the current period (2021-2027). Furthermore, “renationalisation would be an additional blow to the value of the CAP as national measures are more costly and undermine the integrity of the Single Market”, warns Farm Europe.
Further details: https://aeur.eu/f/hvk (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)