UFU SUBMIT VIEWS ON CAP REFORM
The Ulster Farmers' Union today submitted its response to DARD on the implementation of CAP reform in Northern Ireland. The organisation has come to the end of a very extensive debate, including numerous Province wide producer meetings, about how the reforms of the Common Agricultural Policy should be introduced locally. EU Agriculture Ministers agreed last June that the emphasis for CAP support should shift from production to other issues such as the environment, food quality and animal welfare. The changes will be implemented from 2005.
Regional flexibility, secured at last June's CAP negotiations in Luxembourg, had given the farming industry a range of options from which to choose the best way forward for the Provinces agriculture industry.
The UFU's five month consultation concluded on Wednesday evening with a meeting of its Executive committee, which endorsed a series of recommendations to Government.
The UFU has recommended to Government that:
· Full decoupling of farm payments (breaking the link between production and CAP support) should be introduced in Northern Ireland across all sectors, including dairying, on 1 January 2005;
· A vertical hybrid model of decoupling should be implemented;
· A national envelope should not be introduced in any sector;
· Extension of the Rural Development Regulation should not be implemented until the 2007-2013 programme is introduced, (so that funds in the current programme are not transferred).
Ulster Farmers' Union President John Gilliland said the implementation of decoupling in Northern Ireland would fundamentally change the local farming industry. Mr Gilliland commented; "We have recommended the introduction of full decoupling in January 2005, the earliest possible date, for a number of reasons. This creates the flexibility for farmers to make their own decisions. It offers us the opportunity to reduce bureaucracy in our industry with farmers receiving a single farm payment and becoming much more market orientated. This is also the likely implementation date for most countries across Europe and this should minimise trade distortion".
John Gilliland said the UFU was responding positively to the demands of society, saying the reform of the CAP will lead to a greater emphasis on issues such as the environment, food quality and animal welfare, while farm production will be entirely market focused".
John Gilliland said a significant proportion of the debate had centred on the model of decoupling; "This has been a vigorous debate and arguments have been put forward in favour of a range of options including flat rate, historic, hybrid and progressive models of decoupling. The UFU applied a number of principles when considering which model best suited Northern Ireland agriculture. These include ensuring that the model chosen is best placed to: deliver an equitable outcome; future proof the industry by removing cost; and minimise bureaucracy. Having considered the options available, the strong consensus of opinion is that a vertical hybrid model of decoupling will best serve the future of our industry. This model was proposed by each of the Unions livestock, arable and horticultural central commodity committees. The vertical hybrid approach attempts to replicate the current flow of payments in the industry, thus attempting to provide an equitable outcome. It also allows farmers to establish their land base in 2005. This has the potential to minimise conacre costs, which have burdened the industry in the past".
The UFU Executive acknowledged the views of those members who advocated other decoupling models, including dynamic hybrid and historic, and the particular concerns of some producers in the beef finishing, lowland sheep and suckler cow to beef finishing sectors. However the strong consensus view was that a vertical hybrid model is the mechanism most acceptable across the industry.
The UFU will now be urging the Northern Ireland Agriculture Minister Ian Pearson to make a swift decision on CAP reform implementation so that farmers can plan with more certainty for the new decoupling era which lies ahead. John Gilliland said that with the set back of the World Trade Talks suspension in Cancun, the farming industry was making a 'leap of faith' by supporting full decoupling. He said the reforms would only deliver success for Northern Ireland if the food chain operates equitably and the multifunctional benefits of European agriculture are acknowledged at the WTO.
The UFU will now be preparing for important consultations on Cross Compliance and Modulation, with John Gilliland emphasising the need for a strong and united farming voice to represent the industry on these matters.
|
