Doubt has been cast over what will happen farm payments in 2021 if European elections in May stall CAP 2020 negotiations.

This doubt could affect the value of entitlements traded when BPS online applications open this week.

If the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) 2020 negotiations are not completed before the last session of the European Parliament on 18 April, the current CAP will likely roll over to 2021 or 2022.

However, transition arrangements will have to take account of the €12bn hole left in the European budget by Brexit.

This would see the agricultural budget and potentially farm payments cut by 10%, the Irish Farmers Journal estimates.

It also has a knock-on effect for Rural Development Programme 2014-2020 schemes such as the GLAS and Knowledge Transfer.

Agri-Environment Options Scheme (AEOS) 3 contracts ended in December 2018.

If the vote is in early March, then the stage of negotiations may be completed on time

Farmers could have an additional year to wait before a new environmental scheme becomes available to them under the next RDP.

A date will be set for the European Parliament’s agriculture committee to vote on some 7,000 amendments to the CAP 2020 proposal next Tuesday.

If the vote is in early March, then the stage of negotiations may be completed on time, a spokesperson for the European Parliament said.

However, the soundings in Brussels are that it will be later than that, so that newly elected MEPs would have a mandate from their constituents on the reform. MEP elections will take place from 23 to 26 May.

“The Commission is currently working with the co-legislators to agree on the CAP reform post-2020 as soon as possible.

The Commission will be ready to come forward with transitional arrangements if and when necessary,” a spokesperson for the European Commission said.

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