European Commissioner for Agriculture Phil Hogan told farmers at the EU Citizens’ Dialogue in Kilkenny last Friday night that he is doing everything in his power to protect the Common Agricultural Policy budget.

However, IFA president Joe Healy was clear that farmers need to see an increase in the budget to improve farm incomes and reflect inflation.

Listen to "Hogan makes the case for defending the CAP budget" on Spreaker.

“As Commissioner, your job is to fight like hell for an increase in the CAP budget,” Healy said. “This is not about medals or trophies, it’s about livelihoods, it’s about the survival of rural Ireland. The farmers in this room are sick of seeing payments reduced by political decisions and eroded by inflation. Everyone else in this economy gets increases to reflect inflation and so should farmers.”

An announcement on the European Multi-Annual Financial Framework post-2020 is expected next week in Brussels. Brexit is creating a €12bn hole in the budget and, according to Commissioner Hogan, the CAP is viewed as an obvious target for cuts in many quarters. He told the packed hall at O’Loughlin Gaels GAA clubhouse that the scale of the challenge is unprecedented.

To make up the shortfall in the budget left by Brexit, member states have been asked to contribute a higher percentage of Gross National Index. Ireland and the majority of other EU member states have committed to this. But net contributors to the EU budget such as the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden and Austria are still saying ‘no’.

“In the absence of more money from member states, there will be a cut to the CAP budget, and there’s no point trying to sugarcoat that fact,” Hogan said. “For me, the priority is protecting the European and Irish small and medium sized farmer who remains the backbone of Europe’s food production and rural communities.”

Results-based

The next Common Agricultural Policy is moving towards a more results-based approach. Agriculture must increase its environmental credentials.

“The new delivery model will ensure that 100% of direct payments are linked to environmental performance,” Hogan said. There will also be new market crisis tools, more member state flexibility with specific targets and results indicators.

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