MPs to examine ‘fairness’ of CAP reform plans
MPs have announced plans for an inquiry into the implementation of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) in England post-2013.
The House of Commons’ Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (EFRA) committee is seeking written evidence on a number of questions under the headings: fairness, bureaucracy, greening and lessons learned.
The European Parliament, Council of Ministers and the European Commission finally reached an agreement last month on reforming the CAP 2014 – 2020.
EU leaders promised a “greener, fairer and less bureaucratic CAP”. However, the agreement leaves a great deal of flexibility for member states to implement the reforms to suit them.
The NFU welcomed EFRA’s inquiry but said it was “hugely important” to ensure the right reforms were made as the CAP policy affected almost every farmer in the country.
“English farmers take their environmental obligations seriously, but we also have to be able to compete with our competitors on the EU common market. That’s why fairness is at the heart of our policy on CAP.”
NFU spokesman
An NFU spokesman said: “The framework has largely been agreed at the European level, but within the framework there are many levels where DEFRA gets to decide the rules.
“We need to work through these rules and find a way to implement them as simply and fairly as possible.
“English farmers take their environmental obligations seriously, but we also have to be able to compete with our competitors on the EU common market. That’s why fairness is at the heart of our policy on CAP.”
DEFRA must be also challenged to implement the new reform measures without increasing bureaucracy, the spokesman added. Written submissions for EFRA’s inquiry can be submitted via the website www.parliament.uk. The deadline is 9 October, 2013.
The NFU urged its members to help shape the outcome of reforms by responding to EFRA’s questions (see below) either by emailing county advisers or NFU senior CAP adviser Gail Soutar – gail.soutar@nfu.org.uk – by 7 September.
EFRA seeks written evidence on the following:
Fairness
- Whether the UK’s implementation of the CAP might put English farmers at a competitive disadvantage to their regional and European counterparts.
- What steps the government might take in implementing CAP to help tenant farmers and farmers in upland areas, and to take account of issues pertaining to common land.
Bureaucracy
- What steps the government need to take to ensure the reformed CAP will be less bureaucratic than its predecessor and what might prevent this ambition from being achieved.
- How might the government define the minimum activity required for qualification as an “active farmer”.
Greening
- How should the government ensure that CAP delivers the best environmental benefits while supporting food production.
Lessons learnt
- What are the principal lessons the government should learn from the implementation of the previous CAP.
