Norbert LINS (EPP, DE), Chair of the Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development (AGRI), Peter JAHR (EPP, DE), Ulrike MÜLLER (Renew, DE) and Eric ANDRIEU (S&D, FR), rapporteurs hold a press conference on the conclusion of the trilateral negotiations on the post-2022 EU farm policy. Parliament’s and Council’s negotiators reached an informal political agreement on three EU laws that will govern the 2023-2027 EU farm policy. This transcription speech is the result of an automatic process. Check against delivery.

Brussels

press conference

MÜLLER, Ulrike (Renew, DE)

ANDRIEU, Eric (S&D, FR)

Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development

CAP reform (T)

LINS, Norbert (EPP, DE)

JAHR, Peter (EPP, DE)

Press conference by Norbert LINS (EPP, DE), AGRI Chair, Peter JAHR (EPP, DE), Ulrike MÜLLER (Renew, DE) and Eric ANDRIEU (S&D, FR), rapporteurs following the CAP trilogue

https://api.multimedia.europarl.europa.eu/documents/20125/16619933/I207906Chapters%5BSD-EN%5D.srt

SOUNDBITE (Original) Norbert LINS (EPP, DE), AGRI Chair, Thank you very much. Welcome to all of you to our press conference and. Thank you to the three rapporteurs who are here in the room. Just very briefly, I can say we have a deal. Yesterday evening, last night, really just after 1:00 in the morning. We were pretty sure we had it wrapped up and now we finally know that we have so after three years, 25 trialogues, three super trialogues, one jumbo trialogue, over 100 technical meetings, many, many negotiating meetings, we now have an ambitious agreement. 

SOUNDBITE (Original) Norbert LINS (EPP, DE), AGRI Chair, This is the most ambitious reform since the McSherry reform of 1992, the new CI a. appears in line with the Green Deal and brings income and food security, environmental protection and a new social dimension. And it brings all these things together and makes the C.O.P future proof. We've held discussions over the environment, and I'm pleased that the agreement has farmers in focus and ensures that they can remain competitive.

SOUNDBITE (Original) Norbert LINS (EPP, DE), AGRI Chair, We need sustainability and economic and social and environmental terms. When it comes to the negotiations, I can say that they were tough. We didn't always agree there were some very difficult discussions. And at times, things didn't look good. But nevertheless, we do have to recall to the Council that we negotiate on an equal basis with them, as is stated in the Lisbon Treaty. 

SOUNDBITE (Original) Norbert LINS (EPP, DE), AGRI Chair, So I'd like to thank Peter for the strategic plans, regulation, Ulrike Muller, for the financing, management and monitoring the horizontal regulation. And Eric Andrieux for the CMO Common Organisation of Markets Regulation. We have worked as a team. We've stuck together. We've fought to defend the European Parliament's mandate. And I believe that the result speaks for itself, so therefore. I would call. On the agricultural ministers who are meeting in Luxembourg on Monday to accept this compromise. 

SOUNDBITE (Original) Norbert LINS (EPP, DE), AGRI Chair, It might not be perfect, but in my view, it is a good compromise that the cap will be fairer, will be more sustainable, it'll be good for farmers and really focuses on what they do. Small and family run farms will get support. It ensures that we will have an attractive countryside and it gives farmers incentives to do more to protect the environment.

(Original) Norbert LINS (EPP, DE), AGRI Chair, The rapporteurs will talk about the key points. I'll be giving them the floor in a minute. There are just a couple of important things that I want to say. Redistribution, eco schemes and. Also, the social dimension, I think these are the three most important points here. I mean, everyone's got to look for what's important and decide that for themselves. But I think these are the most important achievements that the European Parliament has brought home. 

SOUNDBITE (Original) Norbert LINS (EPP, DE), AGRI Chair, And I would say that when we compare this to previous cap reforms and when you look at the institutional balance we have. I think that the European Parliament really has this time achieved more in terms of the elements that are close to its heart. I think we've negotiated well and I think we can be very satisfied with the result.  

SOUNDBITE (Original) Peter JAHR (EPP, DE), Thank you so much indeed. It's a good day for everybody. Thank you for being here with us. Till the end is also good for agriculture in Europe. I think we've shown that we can deliver. There have been differences between Council commission, but we've delivered and I stood here a couple of weeks ago here and I said how things were going.

SOUNDBITE (Original) Peter JAHR (EPP, DE), Overall. I think it's been a learning process for everybody. You know, you leave the room, you come back in the room, you have to move forward. Second most important thing. This is going to be economically, socially, environmentally, just. Those three things. I would have said should have been included right from the beginning, but socially, economically, environmentally, just that's important. 

SOUNDBITE (Original) Peter JAHR (EPP, DE), We'll see what happens in the next few years, but with this new cap, we want to make sure that things are deliverable. We want to be able to show that our agricultural policy can be successful economically, socially, environmentally. We shouldn't be leaving this to experts. I think there's one of most important points of as far as side effects are concerned, if you look at what we've managed to deal with, redistrict redistribution, there's obligatory redistribution now, 10 percent from the first pillar that has to be redistributed.

SOUNDBITE (Original) Peter JAHR (EPP, DE), Big to small or member states have to find proper measures. That's a real success. We've taken out a lot of the small print. So we've had a I think all of this is a good start for us to be building on. New schemes, 25 percent on average than we have a lesson in the learning phase. So five percent change over the full period. We'll get to a point, I think, where we see member states will say we only plan 25 percent. 

SOUNDBITE (Original) Peter JAHR (EPP, DE), And they'll be saying maybe there wasn't enough money that might be a side effect, good compromise, I think, between conditionality, what farmers have to do for that payment and schemes. I think that's proof that this basic payment. Can be environmentally friendly. So that's to start off with, so we did all this on time and. We have until 2023 transition period, and member states can hand in their strategy plans on time and have them approved, that is the most important implementation tool. There is a national strategy plans, so hopefully there will be very successful in future. 

SOUNDBITE (Original), Ulrike M&Uuml;LLER (Renew, DE) You very much. I'm also very pleased that we've been able to successfully find such a good agreement and we now hope that this will be approved in the Agriculture Committee and then we'll get a good majority in plenary so that we can move on to the new CAP. Now, I was the rapporteur for the Financing Management and Monitoring Regulation, the horizontal regulation. We have a new model anchored there. We've achieved a new structure. We now have ensured that member states can have the necessary flexibility, but they can also be sure that they won't be sending back funds.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Ulrike M&Uuml;LLER (Renew, DE) Because that's been achieved. And we've also ensured that there's a great deal of transparency, transparency for European citizens. We have transparency over the final beneficiaries, but also transparency as to how European money is being used.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Ulrike M&Uuml;LLER (Renew, DE) And we will be able to more effectively fight fraud and corruption. That was an important achievement. We've been discussing the new agriculture reserve today, and I think that's been a very successful outcome for European farmers because we have ensured. That we won't be filling up the funds available by rolling funds over its money that'll come from the budget. And that means that money can be paid out to farmers as of the year 2023.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Ulrike M&Uuml;LLER (Renew, DE) That's a massive success because we can ensure that money flows back to farmers and is available to them. Now, as the Renew Europe group, we have worked actively on the strategic plans and I would also I like to say that these extended eco schemes were extremely important to us. We now have flexibility for member states to do more for the environment, for nature and natural protection.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Ulrike M&Uuml;LLER (Renew, DE) And I am certain that European farmers are prepared to use these measures and green agricultural policy. So this is a massive success, these widened eco schemes mean that a lot of money can be invested under the second pillar. There are many hectares that will receive more environmental protection because they'll be able to use these eco schemes.

SOUNDBITE (Original), Ulrike M&Uuml;LLER (Renew, DE) As a woman. It's particularly important to me and I'd like to thank Peter as rapporteur here, because he has managed to ensure that women are explicitly mentioned in our report. We now have more women farmers who are taking responsibility for farms and the definition of active farmers and the "Young Farmers" program show that European agriculture policy wants to be balanced and also to ensure that new generations can farm as well. 

SOUNDBITE (Original), Ulrike M&Uuml;LLER (Renew, DE) My report deals with structure, transparency, flexibility and also ensures predictability for farmers. And I think that creates a basis which leaves us in a good place. The main political decisions have now been taken, and I'm proud as a farmer to have been able to work on this here, to be involved in shaping all of this. And I look forward to answering any questions you may have. Thank you. 

SOUNDBITE (Orignal) Eric ANDRIEU (S&amp;D, FR) Thank you to everybody. Important moment, I think you know, thank you to Peter nobut. And Ulrica been quite a few years. We started those in 2018.  It's a compromise between the co legislators, parliament and council. 

SOUNDBITE (Orignal) Eric ANDRIEU (S&amp;D, FR) On the CRM. Well, obviously we'll be dealing with each of our dossiers. This is a specific set. This, as you will know, those who follow these negotiations commission. Twenty eighteen in the first text, they didn't basically say anything on the CMO and then the following council didn't say much either. So we've negotiated basically exclusively, if you will, right from the beginning. We've been voting, negotiating on parliament proposals. That's an important thing to remember. It's about green deal, biodiversity, farm to fork, how climate trade environments work together.

SOUNDBITE (Orignal) Eric ANDRIEU (S&amp;D, FR) What we've been able to do is improve the CMO to make sure it's adapted to the current situation. This is the first time since the existence of the cap that we have concluded by more regulation than less. It's it's important to remember this when you look at the results.

SOUNDBITE (Orignal) Eric ANDRIEU (S&amp;D, FR) I'm not going to go through everything. There's too much in this. Just a few hints, if I may, on managing agricultural crises. We've all said right at the beginning, both from the left, the right, the center, wherever you from. Whatever your ideology is, farming markets structurally unstable. I think council also listen to what we had to say here. We needed to renew all of the European tools. We had to manage crises. And this is a very important point now.

SOUNDBITE (Orignal) Eric ANDRIEU (S&amp;D, FR) But in the future, these tools will be easier to trigger voluntary reduction of production. That'll be easier to do with enlarged observatories to all farming sectors to be able to intervene as quickly as possible and not wait until the crisis gets bogged down.

SOUNDBITE (Orignal) Eric ANDRIEU (S&amp;D, FR) The different security nets, safety nets, all of that has been strengthened. Control monitoring, that's all more efficient so that we can deal with financial speculation, all of that we managed to get in the negotiations. 

SOUNDBITE (Orignal) Eric ANDRIEU (S&amp;D, FR) One thing we focused on was the viticulture sector. As you can imagine, we've gone up to twenty, twenty five where we've extended planting permissions. We've looked at Alcohols which are fully alcoholic, less alcoholic. We've looked at human health, consumers health as far as information is concerned, labels as far as energy values, ingredients, nutritional ingredients, all of that seems to be there on labels for consumers. That's quite a big point.

SOUNDBITE (Orignal) Eric ANDRIEU (S&amp;D, FR) Technical point here. Bulk wine prices, we managed to deal with that, even though, as I said, it's quite technical and important for the sector. And obviously they're very grateful. Pesticide residues as well. Huge points for the CMA report. As you know, too many products that are imported into the EU. There is still a risk of pesticides, pesticides which are banned here. That's unacceptable. Right from the beginning, we said in the CMO, and this is what the council had basically refused, even though all of this was perfectly possible.

SOUNDBITE (Orignal) Eric ANDRIEU (S&amp;D, FR) We've come to this compromise, but it was at our behest and we wanted the commission to get involved so that in months to come and farm to fork, if this question comes up, tolerances, pesticides being imported, we wanted to be able to deal with that at the European level. So there's a commitment, a very clear commitment. There's a binding statement from the commission. That's what I managed to obtain. And that will lead to real results.

SOUNDBITE (Orignal) Eric ANDRIEU (S&amp;D, FR) Producers, organizations will allow all sectors to be able to manage their volumes of geographic indicator products for ham, wine and cheese. Well, that will that will be broadened out to all sectors, for all areas of the EU. 

SOUNDBITE (Orignal) Eric ANDRIEU (S&amp;D, FR) And finally, to finish. Sustainability in chains, all the different actors in production, they will be able to be exempt from competition to be able to improve Animal health, for example, on organic milk, prices will be followed up on. So all of that huge amount of questions we looked at during the negotiations. But just to say we started with nothing, but we managed to get a huge amount for the twelve million farmers in the EU, but also for European citizens and biodiversity, the environment. Thank you so much, everybody.