Luxembourg, 21/06/2005 (Agence Europe) - On Monday evening in Luxembourg, the Agriculture ministers of the Member States of the EU reached an agreement on the proposed new European agricultural fund for rural development. The draft agreement is very close to the compromise document presented on Monday morning (EUROPE 8973). The agreement ministers reached creates a single rural development aid fund to be programmed for 2007-13. Resources available for this fund will be 88.75 billion EUR, according to the European Commission's proposal made in July. These sums will be adapted depending on the results of negotiations on the next financial perspectives. The regulation is expected to enter into force on 1 January 2007 (except for some proposals which will apply in 2010)
After the failure of the European Council to reach an agreement on financial perspectives 2007-13, the president of the Agriculture and Fisheries Council, Fernand Boden, said that he was proud that the Council, in a summersault of pride “demonstrated that Europe is capable of taking important decisions”. Marian Fischer Boel, Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development explained that the agreement was proof that “Europe is still alive and not a lame duck”. Fischer Boel also leapt to the defence of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) after attacks were made on it by the United Kingdom. She said that the CAP was the only European policy completely financed by European funds and was a “corner stone of European integration”. Boden exclaimed that the agreement on rural development gave a clear signal to farmers, “they can trust that decisions are made in their favour and that we are not just speaking about them who wastefully consume Community money”.
According to the Council's political agreement reached at unanimity, Community financial participation has three objectives that cover at least 10% of the total contribution of funds for the plank 1 programme (improvement in competitiveness) and plank 3 (quality of live in the countryside and diversification of the rural economy and 25% for plank 2 (improvement of the environment and rural area). The Commission proposal includes 15% for planks 1 and 3 and 25% for plank 2. In the context of French overseas departments, minimum Community financial participation for plank 2 is set at 10% on average for the programming period. A corresponding amount at 5% less of the total programme fund contribution is reserved for plank 4 “Leader) (local development strategies for rural zones, implemented by local action groups). However for new Member States, the percentage of the total Leader contribution is 2.5%. The Council has decided to not include the setting up of a reserve (proposed, however, by the Commission), which aimed to compensate the highest performing Member States in Leader actions.
On the various rural development measures, the compromise text provides, for intervention under plank 1 (improving competitiveness): -aid of 55,000 EUR maximum as start-up aid for young farmers (aged less than 40 and setting themselves up for the first time). The Commission had proposed 40,000 EUR; -early retirement aid for farmers (18,000 EUR per retiring farmer per year, 4000 EUR for farm workers aged at least 55 years (the total duration of aid should not exceed 15 years for the retiring farmer or the farm worker); -aid to modernise holdings; -aid to increase the added value of agricultural and forestry products (limited aid to micro-enterprises and small and medium-sized enterprises); -aid of 3000 EUR per holding for farmers to take part in food quality regimes. For plank 2 (environment and rural areas), planned aid relates to: -payments intended to compensate farmers for the natural disadvantages of mountainous regions; -Natura 2000 payments (500 or 200 EUR per hectare for utilised agricultural area); -agro-environmental payments (between 200 and 900 EUR per hectare); -payments in favour of animal well-being (500 EUR per unit for large animals); -aid for the reforestation of agricultural land (under the Presidency's compromise, the intensity of this aid will be 65% outside less-favoured areas, 75% in less-favoured areas and 85% in extremely remote regions). Moving on to plank 3 (diversification), measures concerning diversification to non-agricultural activities, company start-up aid, the promotion of tourism and related activities, and promoting rural heritage. On the new definition of less-favoured areas, a subject on which the Member States failed to find any common ground, the compromise provides for current provisions to be kept in place until 2010.