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The European Commission unveiled its 2020-2027 budget proposal on 2 May, and it was closely followed by France. France like most other agricultural countries (Ireland, Poland, Italy) oppose any further cutbacks in direct support to farmers. The FNSEA, the main agricultural trade union in France is surprised that the CAP is put aside to finance new policies in the EU. The French Minster of Agriculture, Stéphane Travert, also called the budget proposal “unacceptable”. Read the original post

The European Commission’s proposal on the long-term budget of €1.135 billion in commitments over the period from 2021 to 2027 was unveiled today in the European Parliament by Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and Budget Commissioner Günther Oettinger. Oettinger said the cuts would amount to a 5 % chop to the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy, which currently makes up nearly 40 % of the bloc’s budget, and a 7 % reduction in regional funds, which overall now account for one-third of spending by the EU. More information

EU countries that wish to extend the deadline for farmers to submit their applications for direct payments and certain payment claims under rural development will be allowed to do so, Commissioner Phil Hogan has confirmed. Read more

Today, representatives of EU governments meeting in Brussels will vote on a European Commission plan to ban three neonicotinoid insecticides: Bayer’s imidacloprid and clothianidin, and Syngenta’s thiamethoxam. The Commission has based its plan on an assessment by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), which concluded that the neonicotinoids pose a risk to bees.

The ecology and environment ministers of seven European countries (FR, DE, SE, NL, FI, PT, LU) met in Paris on 25 April and called for a more ambitious climate strategy for the EU. Read more