Minister O’Neill Attends EU Discussion On CAP Reform Proposals

“We had very constructive discussions before the start of the Council and I was very pleased that the presentation by Caroline Spelman to the Council was much closer to our position than has been the case in the past. Mrs Spelman stressed the importance of securing a bigger share of the EU rural development budget for Britain and the north of Ireland, which is one of my key objectives for the coming reforms. “She also highlighted our concerns around the Commissions greening proposals for Pillar I of the CAP and I was particularly pleased that we were able to convince the Defra Minister not to use the occasion yet again to voice her desire to cut the CAP budget. I made it clear to her that this is not a position which I could ever support.” While in Luxembourg, the Minister was also able to hold a bilateral meeting with the Irish Agriculture Minister, Simon Coveney, who also reflected many of her views at the negotiations. The Minister said: “We used the opportunity to take stock of our respective positions on CAP reform, as well as touch on a number of important fisheries matters in advance of the key Fisheries Councils in November and December.” The Minister added, “Overall this was a very positive start to the CAP reform negotiations and we can now move on to the next stage of considering the detail of this complex and radical set of reform proposals.”]]>