CAP Reform - the final stages

By Matt Dempsey

This week's Brussels agreement on the finalisation of the detailed rules surrounding the Fischler package marks a watershed in this phase of European agriculture.

From the outset of the decoupling proposals it was clear that the 100% land requirement, given the large amount of conacre in Ireland, would be a problem.

By agreeing that at least 50% of the land farmed in the reference years of 2000-2002 is all that is necessary to qualify for full entitlements built up, a fundamental problem has been resolved. We go into the precise details on our front and back pages.

The flat 50% rule ignores percentages of rented versus owned land and should be easy to administer.

It will certainly have a cooling effect on the conacre market. Active farmers will no longer be prisoners of the system, but at the same time it should still let a real demand for conacre exist. It's a good section of the agreement and reflects well on all those involved - the Commission, Department and the IFA who pushed the issue with determination and skill.

The fact that the concession also applies to land going for forestry in the future should ensure a keen interest to plant trees in the years ahead. There will be pressure to keep up the planting approvals and the matching budget.

For those who took over holdings from farmers who entered the retirement scheme it is hard to see how a more favourable arrangement could be developed. The clarification that payments based on one or two years farming during the reference years will set the Single Farm Payment will ease most of the problems. Though, inevitably, there will be those who will have been only in the build up phase in those early years.

It would seem that the maximum amount that may be deducted from farmers' payments to create the National Reserve will be 3%, plus the eventual 5% modulation deduction.

The detailed rules on cross compliance have also been agreed, but their detailed application has still to be worked out.

The parallel announcement that that National Reserve will be distributed and set up before the end of this year is an ambitious timetable, but the Department has shown a real capacity for meeting administrative challenges.

We now await the formal notification of each farmer's provisional entitlements.