27/05/2011 Standing Committee
Strasbourg, 27.05.2011 - The EU’s Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) currently discriminates against new EU member states and needs a “radical shift” to make it fairer and more sustainable, according to PACE.
In a resolution adopted today, based on a report by Juha Korkeaoja (Finland, ALDE), the Assembly said it “deplores that 85 per cent of CAP direct payments go to just 18 per cent of farmers, with the largest farms in the old EU member states benefiting the most.” Regarding fishing in the EU, it also condemned overfishing and a reliance on immature catches.
The Assembly called on the EU to modify both the CAP and fisheries policy to meet the “food security, environmental, biodversity, climate, energy, rural and coastal development challenges of the 21st century”, including simpler rules, fairer payments to new EU states, and greater support for smaller or family producers.