MEPs debated German Presidency’s priorities with Federal Minister Klöckner
Agriculture Committee MEPs discussed the priorities of the German Council Presidency with Federal Minister of Food and Agriculture Julia Klöckner on Wednesday afternoon.
Finalising the Transitional regulation for 2021-2022, to bridge the gap between the soon-to-expire Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) rules and the not-yet-agreed future ones, and reaching a deal on Council’s negotiating mandate on the CAP reform in October, will be key agriculture-related priorities of the German Council Presidency, the Federal Minister of Food and Agriculture Julia Klöckner told MEPs on Wednesday.
The Presidency will also focus on animal welfare, digitalisation and reducing food waste. Farm to fork, Biodiversity and EU Forest strategies will also be on top of the presidency’s agenda, the German Agriculture Minister said.
MEPs in the debate denounced the European Council’s attempts to decide unilaterally on the EU farm policy matters and insisted that they need to be co-decided by the Parliament and the Council. Many speakers called for a two-year long CAP transitional period and stressed that Farm to Fork strategy measures should be designed and implemented with farmers and not against them. Several MEPs also criticised detrimental effects of trade deals on EU farmers and called for fairer distribution of direct payments both within and among member states.
You can re-watch the full debate here.
Prior to the debate, Minister Klöckner and Agriculture Committee Chair Norbert Lins (EPP, DE) held a press point. You can re-watch their statements here.
Kuntatti:
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Ján JAKUBOV
Press Officer -
Adéla SÍLEŠOVÁ
Trainee