Brussels, 16/04/2004 (Agence Europe) - During a visit to the Netherlands on Tuesday, Commissioner Franz Fischler announced that the European Commission was prepared to make an advance payment of some of the premiums for dairy farmers to help them get through the current crisis in the dairy sector. The proposal, which will be considered by the Member States on the relevant management committee, would allow farmers to be sent some cash to help them cope with the collapse in milk prices in the EU. EU aid is usually paid from December onwards (until June of the following year). This new measures (allowed by the 2003 milk and dairy product regulation) would allow farmers to be paid some of their premiums in advance (50 or 70%, for example, of total aid) from 15 October onwards, the date of the new budget year (2005). This measure will be of particular interest to France and the Netherlands, whose dairy farmers are facing economic problems. EU sources suggest, however, that there is no great rush since Member States have until 15 October to decide whether to authorise this new measure.