Budget for next year’s direct payments still up in the air

Farmers will have to wait until after the summer to find out the EU’s budget for direct payments as coronavirus exacerbates delays in both CAP and budget negotiations.

The next CAP had been due to begin on 1 January 2021. However, it will not be ready in time and the EU is currently pushing through transitional regulations to bridge the gap between the end of the current CAP and the beginning of the next one.

Members of the European Parliament’s agriculture committee met virtually on Wednesday 15 April to discuss the regulations with the length of time it will last and the budget the main talking points.

MEPs believe the European Commission’s timeframe of just a one year delay is too ambitious as the CAP reform or the EU’s seven year budget, the MFF, are not yet finalised. Both would need to be signed off on by October 2020 for a one year transition to be possible in the eyes of many.

Budget

The MEPs also rejected the Commission’s proposed budget for the transitional period with an overall cut of 5% proposed. Broken down, 3.9% would be taken from direct payments and 15% taken from rural development schemes.

MEPs want the budget to be at least maintained at current levels. They are due to vote on their amendments to the regulation on 28 April.

Transition

However, an official for the Commission told the meeting that the transition period’s budget would be based on the budget for agriculture decided during MFF negotiations. He stressed the figures included at present were only temporary until it was agreed.

A number of MEPs expressed the view that the ongoing pandemic highlighted the need to protect supports for farmers rather than cut their funding.

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