Irish farmers are facing the prospect of a rollover of the current Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) for 2028 at least.

In his first major interview on CAP reform ahead of the upcoming Irish presidency of the European Union, Minister for Agriculture Martin Heydon said that “the timelines are extremely tight” for concluding a deal by the end of the year.

Minister Heydon will chair the council of agricultural ministers from July until December.

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Even if a deal is concluded, which would require the agreement not only of the ministerial council, but also the European Parliament, that would leave just 12 months for schemes to be designed and the necessary legislation to be put in place.

“If there is going to be a transition period, which looks more likely than not, I’d be keen to get clarity on that sooner rather than later. But you can understand why the Commission doesn’t want to concede that, because they’re afraid people will take the foot off the gas,” said Minister Heydon.

“But it is a tight, ambitious deadline to get CAP signed off by the end of this year when the budget isn’t agreed.”

Many Irish farmers might prefer a rollover in 2028 to the new system, with programme cuts inevitable under the current budget proposed by the Commission, which would see CAP funds slashed by 22%.

The previous CAP was extended by two years in 2021 and 2022.

However, farmers would see cuts to their payments in 2028 even if there is a programme rollover, unless the budget is increased.

The new budget for 2028-2035 will have to stretch across all the CAP schemes.