Irish Presidency CAP Budget a Huge Let Down – IFA

IFA President Francie Gorman said that the latest proposed EU budget, including the allocation for the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), is a huge let down for Irish farmers.

“In the original Commission proposal, the EU CAP budget was cut by 22% which would result in a 24% cut to Irish payments. The Irish presidency proposal today has not improved this at all. It is huge let down for Irish and EU farmers,” Francie Gorman said.

“Farmers will feel that EU is turning their back on farming and that the Irish Government is not delivering for them,” he said. 

Francie Gorman was speaking after the Irish Presidency today published its new ‘negotiating box’ in Brussels in advance of the European Council meeting set for next Thurs (Oct 15th) where EU leaders will work toward pursuing agreement on the EU long-term budget for 2028-2034. 

“The proposal today is to allocate €293bn to the EU CAP budget. EU farmers need €500bn to build on-farm resilience, to encourage young people into our sector, to ensure food security and to enhance the sustainability of a very fragile sector,” he said.

“There are other changes in the text which are concerning including a further reduction in the minimum payment per hectare from €130 as per the original EU Commission proposal to €90 per hectare as per today’s proposal,” the IFA President said.

Francie Gorman is also a Vice President of the European farmer representative body COPA, and he said all EU farm organisations will meet next week to discuss these dire proposals.

“All the EU farm organisations will be meeting in Stockholm next week to devise a plan to respond to this dire negotiating box,” he said.