Europe: Historic day for the Common Agricultural Policy
Irish Minister for Agriculture, Simon Coveney TD, went on to describe the main elements of the deal, which was secured after marathon talks between the three institutions that have been taking place in Luxembourg and Brussels since last Sunday.
On the distribution of direct payments within Member States, which the Minister described as one of the most difficult aspects of the negotiations, the institutions had agreed that, in addition to the Commission’s proposed flat-rate payment by 2019, Member States will have the option to apply the partial convergence model recommended by Ireland, subject to a minimum payment per farmer of 60% of the national or regional average payment per hectare by 2019. Member States will also have the option to apply a maximum level of payment, and to limit the amount redistributed from individual farmers to 30% of their total payments. The Minister described this outcome as a reasonable and balanced compromise, which satisfied the demands of Member States as well as accommodating the concerns of the European Parliament. It also represented a very good outcome for Ireland, as the partial convergence model combined with the minimum payment would lead to a redistribution of only about one third of the amount that would have resulted from the Commission’s flat-rate proposal.
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