Brussels, 24/01/2008 (Agence Europe) - During a press lunch on Thursday 24 January in Brussels, Michel Barnier, French Agriculture Minister, said that the French EU presidency (July-December 2008) will launch a political debate on missions to be fulfilled by the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) after 2013. “We do not want the debate on review of the EU budget” between 2008-2010 to “pre-empt the political debate on the CAP”, the minister said, adding that he was in favour of the CAP being included in the Lisbon strategy. In order to initiate the debate on the CAP for the post 2013 period, the French presidency will publish a policy paper to be discussed during the informal meeting of the Agriculture Council from 20-22 September in Annecy, Haute-Savoie.
In the quarrel announced on the EU budget, Mr Barnier will voice opposition to the fall in CAP allocations and to renationalisation of such expenditure. He considers that France can count on 17 to 18 other EU countries to defend a “strong” CAP.
Rather than speak of “Community preference” (a term used by Nicolas Sarkozy last September, EUROPE 9500), Michel Barnier prefers to use the term “new European preference”: - a European budget, an “architecture” of customs tariffs and strengthened quality control of the products that enter the EU. (L.C.)