The Agriculture Ministers of the European People's Party (EPP) issued a joint statement regarding the Council recommendations on the future of the Common Agricultural Policy at the Luxembourg session of the Agriculture and Fisheries Council.

The EPP ministers stressed: the Union continues to require a strong Common Agricultural Policy to successfully tackle the challenges faced with regard to politics, the economy, the environment and climate change.

The documents signatories drew special attention to the importance of the retention of the CAP's two-pillar structure, the need for competitiveness and sustainability, the support of innovation, the preservation of the safety net that serves to combat market price fluctuations, and the reinforcement of the position of agricultural producers.

The agricultural ministers associated with the EPP feel that the Council recommendations do not include the pursuit of simplification as determined in the presidency conclusions to a suitable extent. The document adopted during the Hungarian presidency emphasised the goal that farmers' administrative burdens should not increase further to a much greater extent.

The ministers also emphasised the fact that sufficient flexibility must be available to member states when implementing the CAP, but that this must not lead to confusion within the internal market.

The EPP ministers also stress that the CAP will only be able to successfully tackle future challenges and requirements if sufficient budget resources are assured. The goal of the declaration's signatories is that the resources available for the Common Agricultural Policy for the period starting in 2014 be of at least the same magnitude as during the current period.

The text of the Declaration is available in the attached document.

(Press Office of the Ministry of Rural Development)