Miliband receives support of Italy for greater CAP reform

DEFRA secretary David Miliband and his Italian counterpart Paulo de Castro signed an accord in Brussels this week outlining their joint position on the future of European agriculture policy.

In the communiqué the two Member States outlined their desire to see an end to compulsory set-aside in the arable sector and the end to milk quota in the dairy sector.

It also suggests setting a minimum level for direct payments to remove incentives for the break-up of farm businesses in to smaller units regardless of whether or not it makes economic of business sense.

The agreement also shows considerable support for environmental schemes.

“We believe that European agriculture should continue to perform a range of functions of value to society, in particular with respect to the environment, by addressing climate change, safeguarding landscapes and protecting biodiversity.

“In that respect, we believe Pillar 2 of the CAP plays a valuable role and we want to see a greater emphasis on effectively targeted schemes which offer financial reward for farmers to protect the landscape and biodiversity and to help address the problem of climate change through measures such as carbon storage and flood prevention.

“We support policy initiatives aimed at increasing the use of bio-fuels from sustainable sources in order to help achieve greenhouse gas emission reduction targets.  For example, by setting requirements for the proportion of biofuels in the transport fuel mix and by promoting investment in processing, distribution and energy generation infrastructure,” it says.

David Miliband and Italian Agriculture Minister Paulo de Castro signed an accord this week in Brussels aiming to put the UK and Italy at the vanguard of the drive to reform the Common Agricultural Policy