John Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)

I presume the Deputy is referring to the health check of the CAP, which is currently underway. The first phase of this process was completed with the agreement of Council conclusions at the meeting of the Council of Ministers in March. I was generally pleased with the outcome. The next phase will begin when the legislative proposals are published in May. Bearing in mind that the review is intended to be a fine-tuning exercise of the 2003 reforms and not a fundamental reform, I expect the outcome to be limited in terms of policy change but strong on delivery of improvements to current systems.

The main change which I would like to see emanating from this review is the delivery of further operational simplification to farmers in a way that brings genuine and tangible benefits at farm level. By this I mean simplification of those elements of the single payment regulation that are causing unnecessary bureaucracy, such as the restrictive rules on management of the national reserve, the modulation refund, the lack of advance payment options and so on. I am also anxious to simplify cross-compliance by removing redundant statutory management requirements. In this regard I have submitted practical suggestions on simplification, which I trust the Commission will take on board when framing the legislative proposals.

Second, I would like to see some widening of national discretion to address specific issues that may arise. I am thinking of the references in the Commission communication to an expanded article 69, the option of moving to flatter rates of payment, the establishment of minimum payment areas or amounts, and risk and crisis management measures. The health check should provide options to member states to adjust the common support mechanisms in a way that suits them best, and we should not impose the same solutions on all.

I remain opposed to the proposed increase in the modulation rate. While I am fully supportive of measures under pillar 2 of the CAP I do not believe that they should be funded at the expense of a reduction in funding for pillar 1. I would like this review to provide the certainty and stability that farmers need to adapt to the decoupled payment regime.

Another important issue is that of milk quotas. Assuming their abolition by 2015 as envisaged by the Commission, I want to see a soft landing. A gradual increase in quotas is the most sensible and logical way to achieve this. Clear and final policy decisions are needed so that stakeholders can plan their production decisions over the coming years with confidence. In addition, I am seeking to retain the existing market management measures in place to cater for any price volatility that may occur with the expiry of restrictions.

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