Brussels, 22/05/2001 (Agence Europe) - In a working document that should be presented to Ministers on the sidelines of the Agriculture Council on Tuesday and Wednesday, Portugal brings its contribution to the reform of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) by proposing a "new direction for European agriculture".
Portugal feels that it is necessary to introduce the following measures during a long transition period (2003/2010): - create a new system of aid per farm, decoupled from production and directed towards the promotion of the environment, employment and quality; - guarantee existing farmers a level of aid per farm "not below the average of the reference period 1999-2001 (value of the direct aids received in the framework of the CMO concerned); this transitional aid would notably be aimed at supporting the re-conversion of the production systems, during the first phase of transition (2003/2006) and to end the restrictions presently enforced in terms of rights to premiums and aids; - institute a modulation mechanism for the transitional aid, obligatory for all the Member States; the modulation would give substance to the core aim of the reform proposed, that is to say the redirecting of aid while respecting the principal of the redirecting of financial resources at the European level; - retain the present system for price support, as well as production quotas, import duties and export restrictions, until the end of the transition period, with the adjustments considered as being necessary in the framework of the mid-way revision of CAP included in the Agenda 2000, before undertaking a progressive alignment of these prices and quotas towards the world market (2007/2010). As of 2011, the new CAP would be provided with a system of aid on an individual farm basis, decoupled from productions and directed towards the promotion of the environment, in order to favour the stabilisation of farmer revenues in the face of price instability in the world markets and other factors responsible for significant oscillations in agricultural revenue.
The reform model proposed should answer the challenges of competitiveness, quality and sustainable development. With regards to competitiveness, Lisbon feels that the direct aid that comes from the 1992 reform continues to be tied to production: they force the producer to maintain the number of heads of cattle or surface area declared. In addition to leading to greater complexity in the administration of the aids and in its control, this introduces a highly rigid structure, with regards to the adjustments that should be made to provide an answer to the markets and to the new requirements of the environment, one can read in this document. Thus Portugal favours the decoupling of the aids to agricultural areas and the number of heads of cattle in the farm. This technique would provide greater freedom of enterprise for the farmer, a better use of resources and a better orientation towards the market. With regards to quality, the present CAP is held responsible for the increase in intensive farming techniques due to the payment of aids in relation to the number of heads of cattle, prices or the surface area set aside for determined activities. With regards to sustainable development, the main challenges to be taken up are notably to: - adapt modern agriculture to minimum environmental requirements (notably the eco-conditioning of aid); - support and promote means of production susceptible of generating environmental benefits; - conserve the diversity of the traditional systems.
Thus Portugal proposes a new CAP whose values notably privilege the importance of the territorial dimension of the agricultural and rural policy and the enhancing of the contractual nature of the relationship between the farmers and society (especially with regards to the satisfying the growing demand for public goods and services in the rural world).