Offaly MEP: ‘Non-existent cows and UAE royals are argument for CAP reform'
Recent revelations of EU farm payments reaching members of the UAE royal family and subsidies being claimed for non-existent cattle in Greece demonstrate the need for stronger safeguards around CAP funding, not a smaller agriculture budget, Fianna Fáil MEP Barry Cowen has said.
Speaking at the European Parliament's Agriculture Committee in Brussels this week, Cowen said taxpayers must have confidence that agricultural funding reaches the farmers and rural communities it is intended to support.
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The Midlands North-West MEP, who is Renew Europe's lead negotiator on the next CAP, made the comments as Parliament begins its detailed consideration of proposals for the policy after 2027.
Cowen said the controversies strengthened the case for tighter rules governing who can receive CAP payments, including through capping large payments and ensuring EU agricultural funding ultimately benefits people resident within the Union.
MEP Cowen said: "There is a legitimate debate to be had about how we spend taxpayers' money through the next CAP, and those of us arguing for a larger, ring-fenced agriculture budget have a particular responsibility to demonstrate that it is money well spent.
"Recent revelations involving members of the UAE royal family receiving direct payments, alongside subsidies being paid for non-existent cows in Greece, understandably undermine public confidence in the system.
"But the lesson from those cases cannot be that European farmers need a smaller CAP budget.
"The answer to badly targeted money is not less money. It is better safeguards to make sure that money reaches the people it was intended for."
"That means we need a serious discussion in these negotiations about capping very large payments and ensuring CAP funding ultimately lands in the pockets of EU residents.
"If we are going to make the case for an increased ring-fenced CAP budget, we owe it both to farmers and taxpayers to ensure every possible safeguard is in place.
"Genuine farmers should not pay the price for weaknesses in the system. We need to fix those weaknesses, not use them as an excuse to cut agriculture funding."