It's all systems go for CAP - Calleary

Fresh from his first official visit to Brussels as Minister for Agriculture, Dara Calleary has a CAP budget to work with.

Sitting down with the Irish Farmers Journal, he outlined his priorities.

On the CAP he says: “I welcome the deal. It was a very difficult and challenging summit; I think the Taoiseach did a good job for Ireland. I think we’re coming out ahead as regards the next CAP budget, we’re about €50m ahead (over the seven years of the MFF compared to 2014-2020), when you consider some of the predictions of a 9% cut, which would have been quite devastating. I think it’s a very good result from where we started.”

I think we’re coming out ahead as regards the next CAP budget, we’re about €50m ahead

Looking forward to the weeks ahead, he says it’s now time to “put flesh on the bones of that [CAP budget]”.

“I found it incredibly useful to be at Monday’s ministerial council meeting, to meet some of the ministers. I’m somebody who values human connections. I met the Commissioner as well, and that’s going to be a key relationship.

“The message from the German presidency is that they want to have general agreement by October, so it’s a pretty ambitious agenda. Now that we have a budget in place, it’s all systems go.”

Speaking about the next CAP, Minister Calleary says there is a need for sustainability to be at the heart of it.

“Consumers are demanding that, and we have to be attuned to that message. However, we would be of the view that CAP is still a very important income support. Clearly that’s what we fought very hard for.

I met the Commissioner as well, and that’s going to be a key relationship

“Over the next few weeks, we’ll be talking to our counterparts across Europe, trying to get their priorities, aligning those with our priorities. The German presidency is quite dynamic and focused. The debates were very structured, but gave a sense of where people are coming from.”

Environmental focus

The EU has stipulated that 40% of future CAP spending is to be on environmental programmes.

“A lot of our existing schemes actually fall into that bracket, so it’s not going to be a massive change,” says the minister.

“GLAS, AEOS and various local-led schemes, which have been really effective and I’m quite intrigued by over the last seven days. We’re well there in Pillar I and in the existing Pillar II schemes. We will continue to examine those schemes to make sure they are delivering, on actions but also on results. We have to measure them now and see what they are coming out with,” he says.

I genuinely think that Irish farming is ready to take on this challenge with the proper supports and backup in place

“I genuinely think that Irish farming is ready to take on this challenge with the proper supports and backup in place. I’ve always believed that farmers were the original guardians of the environment. We have to be ahead of the curve in meeting consumer demand for sustainability.”

Convergence

The flattening of payments between countries and within countries is a topic of hot debate and one that the Mayo minister has given plenty of thought to.

“Convergence was part of the last CAP. It’s going to be part of the next CAP. There has been substantial progress in relation to the transitional phase. We’ve just had the budget confirmed in the last 36 hours.

“We’ll make a call on that very quickly in the autumn. It’s a policy I favour, but we have to be practical and realistic as well, and working with our partners in Government, but it will be very much part of the next CAP as well.”