Finnish Preliminary Views on the Future CAP

Kari Valonen, Head of EU CoordinationMinistry of Agriculture and Forestry

19.4.2016

To be touched upon

• Principles important for Finland

• Lessons learned, challenges to be met

• A simpler model (?)

Principles• The agricultural policy needs to be maintained as a

common policy.

• The CAP must enable diverse agricultural production in all regions of the EU, also in those areas where production costs are high due to natural conditions.

Flexibility and specific solutions for MS are needed due to different structures and production conditions.

Lessons learned• The two pillars of CAP are mixed and have common

elements but lack harmonization (definitions differ, similar objectives under both pillars).

• Direct payments, market measures and rural development measures are appropriate basic tools for meeting policy objectives…

• …but the structure, implementation and the control/audit/sanctions regime of the policy needs to be simplified.

Lessons learned (cont.)• New tools need to be developed for market and risk

management.

• Environmental and climate change objectives need to be tackled – but in a more simple fashion.

• A more detailed and targeted policy requires also more controls and follow-up of its effects.how to find a balance?

Lessons learned (cont.)• In implementation, control and audits, the Commission’s

regular answer to ECA and EP criticism is tightening the rules.

• The ever more detailed regulation makes the policy unmanageable for the farmers and the PAs…resulting to higher implementation costs, and …despite a considerable increase in control costs the

error rates do not normally fall below 2 % level ... thus a need for ever tighter control…

Lessons learned (cont.)

• There is a need for a serious discussion on controls between the Court of Auditors, the Commission, the Council and the EP.

• The control efforts, costs and sanctions must be in proportion to the real risk to the EU funds. At the moment the cost-benefit point of view is missing.

Challenges• Need to answer societal expectations concerning e.g.

– traditional CAP objectives– environmental issues– climate change adaptation/mitigation– increased market volatility– risk management

• How to do it without increasing EU funding and maintaining a common policy that uses the funds effectively for meeting the objectives?

A simpler model

• Move from two pillars to one pillar structure

simplification: remove overlapping elements

harmonization: have only one set of objectives and definitions throughout the policy

Other RDInvestmentsAnimal welfareOrganic productionYoung farmersANCNew SEM**Crises/risk mngmentCoupled supportBasic payment*

10

01.05.23

10

Investments

ANC-PII

Market measures

Small farms

Basic payment

Redistributive payment

Pill

ar II

Pill

ar I

CA

P p

ost 2

020,

Sin

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Pill

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2020

Coupled support

Young farmersANC-PIGreening

Animal welfare

Young farmersOrganic production

Market measures

AECM

• SAPS type, regionalized flat-rate, no entitlements

Other RD

** ”Single Environmental Measure” combining greening and AECM

?

?

A simpler model (cont.)• Review the baseline: evaluate CC to simplify it, include

only clear, relevant and directly farming-related matters on which the farmer can influence.

• SAPS-type basic support: regionalized flat-rate, no payment entitlements.

• Continue coupled payments at the current levels for maintaining production in vulnerable sectors and areas.

A simpler model (cont.)• Combine greening, environmental and climate

measures into a new comprehensive ”Single Environmental Measure” (SEM) fix a minimum % for EU funding in national

”envelope”

• Enhance risk management which tools?

A simpler model (cont.)• The Commission approves MS policy choises and

support elements, but in a much simpler manner than the current RDPs

• Less measures, more harmonized and streamlined rules more clarity, less IT systems to design and

manage, less control, less errors (hopefully)…

To sum up

• The single pillar model is more simple, coherent and stableanswers to the societal needs concerning food

security, environment and climate is more flexible for MS and less bureaucratic for

farmers

Other RDInvestmentsAnimal welfareOrganic productionYoung farmersANCNew SEM**Crises/risk mngmentCoupled supportBasic payment*

15

01.05.23

15

Investments

ANC-PII

Market measures

Small farms

Basic payment

Redistributive payment

Pill

ar II

Pill

ar I

CA

P p

ost 2

020,

Sin

gle

Pill

ar

CA

P 2

014-

2020

Coupled support

Young farmersANC-PIGreening

Animal welfare

Young farmersOrganic production

Market measures

AECM

• SAPS type, regionalized flat-rate, no entitlements

Other RD

** ”Single Environmental Measure” combining greening and AECM

?

?