Brussels (Brussels Morning) – The European Council has officially approved a targeted review of certain aspects of the common agricultural policy (CAP). This move aims to address concerns raised by farmers and respond to recent geopolitical developments.
The European Council formally assumed a targeted review of certain basic actions of the common agricultural policy (CAP). This review comes as a reaction to concerns voiced by farmers in recent months and takes into account the effect of geopolitical developments, such as the outcomes of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and of extreme weather events.
David Clarinval, Belgian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for the Self-Employed, SMEs and Agriculture, Institutional Reforms and Democratic Renewal states that “This targeted review of the common agricultural policy is a concrete result of our efforts to cut red tape and ensure simplification for farmers. The adoption comes only two months after the proposal was presented by the Commission. This clearly demonstrates we are delivering on the promises we have made to European farmers.”
What factors influenced the decision to conduct the targeted review?
The review discourses certain elements of the CAP strategic pursuits regulation and the regulation on the financing, management and monitoring of the common agricultural policy (the ‘horizontal regulation’). It comes as a comeback to issues encountered during the first year of the undertaking of the new CAP.
What are the main elements addressed in the CAP review?
The updated rules provide simplification, reduce administrative burden, and deliver greater flexibility for complying with specific environmental conditions while ensuring a predictable framework for farmers.
The text hits a careful balance between the need to preserve the sustainability ambitions contained in the current CAP and assuring that farmers’ concerns are effectively and promptly addressed.
What are the next steps after the Council’s approval of the review?
In the next steps, the law will now be signed by the representatives of the Council and the EU Parliament. It will then be publicised in the Official Journal and enter into force on the day following its publication, by the end of May. Farmers will be permitted to retroactively apply some of the new regulations related to environmental conditionalities for the claim year 2024.
How swiftly did the European institutions address farmers’ concerns?
During its session on 26 February 2024, the Agriculture and Fisheries Council demonstrated its political will to respond effectively to the worries voiced by farmers and urged the Commission to come up with a recommendation to amend the CAP regulations in a targeted manner.
On 15 March 2024, the Commission (Commissioner for Agriculture, Janusz Wojciechowski) issued its proposal.
The European Parliament decided to deal with the file under its ‘urgent procedure’ and agreed, on 24 April 2024, to authorise the CAP simplification package. The extremely short time between the publication of the recommendation by the Commission and its formal adoption today by the Council recalls the commitment of the three institutions to fast address the situation European farmers are currently facing.
