Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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1847. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the up-to-date position at EU level in relation to the need to ringfence funding for CAP post 2027; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47399/25]

Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael)
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On 16 July 2025, the EU Commission launched its proposals for the next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), Common Agriculture Policy (CAP) and Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) for the period 2028 to 2034. 

The CAP is central to the EU’s success in ensuring food security, supporting farm incomes and developing rural areas; and it  remains critical to the Irish agri-food sector’s resilience and competitiveness.

The Commission’s proposals for the next MFF include a guaranteed minimum ring-fenced of almost €300 billion for CAP. There is obviously concern that this represents only 80% of the CAP budget in the current MFF (€387 billion), although the Commission have indicated that Member States can top up this funding from within their ‘national and regional plan’ allocations. 

There is a long way to go in these negotiations, and these proposals are a starting point only. It is my intention to seek an increase in CAP funding to ensure an adequate allocation for Ireland as we progress through the detailed budget negotiations, which at the end of the day must be agreed by Heads of State and Government in the European Council.

As Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, I am working closely with the EU institutions and with my counterparts in other Member States to influence the negotiations for the next CAP and the next Common Fisheries Policy. I will continue to meet with my counterparts at monthly meetings of the AgriFish Council, as well as in bilateral discussions. I assure the Deputy that I will prioritise these engagements at European level, particularly in preparation for Ireland’s Presidency of the EU in the second half of 2026.