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Farm payments “will continue to flow” to farmers if the rollout of the next Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) is delayed, the European Commissioner for Agriculture Phil Hogan has said.
He told the European Parliament’s agriculture committee on Tuesday that the Commission is “ready in the eventuality” that a transitional arrangement is needed, but said there is still some time to get business done in the autumn session of this parliament and council.
“We will assess the situation in autumn. The money will continue to flow to our farmers irrespective of the timing of these arrangements, so that farm income cannot take second place to legal processes in the council.
“We can do our business between now and the end of the year if we all work together politically.
“[The Commission] is ready to come forward to ensure farm incomes are protected,” he said.
Mercosur
Mercosur was top of the agenda for many MEPs in their questioning of the commissioner, including Independent MEP Luke ‘Ming’ Flanagan and Sinn Féin MEP Matt Carthy.
Flanagan questioned why the Commissioner “offered a €50m insurance policy one week and the following week cut the brake cable on the same vehicle”, in reference to the €100m Beef Exceptional Aid Measure (BEAM) followed by the provisional agreement to Mercosur.
The Commissioner replied: “Tell your farmers not to take it, they don’t have to take it.”
He also said that MEP Flanagan “tried to misrepresent” the €100m fund.
MEP Carthy questioned how it made environmental sense to transport 100,000t of beef from the far end of the world to supplant the best product being produced in Europe.
In a general response, the Commissioner said that standards are the key issue.
“The UK, if it does leave, is likely to do a deal with other countries around the world. If it does a deal with Mercosur countries… it will have to respect EU standards and Mercosur standards in the event of a free trade agreement.”
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