On Wednesday 8 October in Strasbourg, the European Parliament adopted its negotiating position with the Council of the EU on the proposal to simplify certain rules of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). There were 492 votes in favour, 111 against and 39 abstentions. The Greens/EFA and The Left groups voted against the amendments to the proposal, believing that the European Parliament is going too far in terms of environmental deregulation (see EUROPE 13725/8).
MEPs, who confirmed the position of the European Parliament’s Committee on Agriculture, are providing for greater flexibility in the way farms can comply with the CAP’s environmental rules.
The amendments specify that farmers whose holdings (in whole or in part) are certified as organic or are in conversion to organic farming are deemed to meet GAEC (good agricultural and environmental condition) standards 1, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7, for the part of their holdings that is certified or in conversion.
In addition, farmers whose farms are located on sites designated as special areas of conservation or special protection areas under Council Directive 92/43/EEC (‘Habitats’) and Directive 2009/147/EC (‘Birds’) are deemed to comply with GAEC standards 1 to 7.
Farmers whose farms have a total area of less than 50 hectares are deemed to comply with the three-crop rule set out in standard GAEC 7.
The European Parliament specifies that Member States may also decide to consider as permanent grassland: - land that has not been included in the farm’s crop rotation and has not been ploughed for at least seven years; - land that was not classified as arable at 1 January 2023.
With 401 votes against, 189 in favour and 48 abstentions, Parliament rejected a PfE Group amendment aimed at suspending the implementation of the compulsory condition relating to basic income support in wetlands and peatlands (GAEC 2 standard) for all farmers, regardless of farm size, type of production or location.
MEPs are also proposing to lower the threshold at which farmers can obtain financial support from national governments to cover insurance premiums: at least 15% of production or average annual income lost (compared to 20% in the initial proposal).
Parliament is also proposing to double the support ceiling for small farmers (annual payment of up to €5,000) and to increase the new one-off funding for business development (up to €75,000).
Warning from Christophe Hansen. During the debate on the previous day, the Commissioner for Agriculture, Christophe Hansen, pointed out that some of the Parliament’s amendments gave cause for concern. In particular, he cited the extension of the rules on automatic decommitment and the weakening of risk management measures “that deviate considerably from our proposal”.
He also expressed reservations about the changes affecting a number of important GAECs.
“These changes would cumulatively undermine the attainment of the CAP’s climate and environmental objectives, and could also delay the agreement on this file, given the Council’s position”, the commissioner warned, adding that it was necessary to finalise this dossier in October, “in order for our farmers to feel this simplification during the next calendar year”. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)