Farming News - Farming CAP Reform: A great leap backwards
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Farming CAP Reform: A great leap backwards
CPRE has expressed dismay and concern about proposed changes to the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) announced yesterday (Wednesday 11th) by The European Commission .
New eligibility requirements that need to be met by farmers if they are to receive their payments have been added, but these provide little if any additional environmental benefit. More worryingly there is still uncertainty about whether the UK's green farming schemes will receive the money they need to succeed.
Ian Woodhurst, CPRE's Senior Farming Campaigner, says: "We hoped this reform would bring a major shift of EU funding towards rewarding and enabling farmers to do more for the environment [2]. Instead the proposals look like a great leap backward.
“We are particularly concerned that the supposed 'greening' of payments to farmers will achieve little. Additionally there is a continued risk these proposals will lead to our green farming schemes being critically under funded. The very schemes we rely on to improve the quality of our landscapes.
“In the negotiating period to come it is crucial that the Government secure the means to provide farmers with the support they need to deliver real environmental improvements to our countryside."