Minister for Agriculture, Food, and the Marine Charlie McConalogue TD has confirmed that Ireland’s draft CAP Strategic Plan was formally adopted by the European Commission at the College of Commissioners meeting on Wednesday morning.
The draft CAP Strategic Plan was resubmitted to the European Commission in early August 2022, and preliminary information about the proposed implementation, opening dates, and other details for new schemes for the period 2023 – 2027 has begun to issue to farmers.
The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine is also developing the administrative and IT systems to ensure that schemes can launch according to the necessary schedule, and in order to provide a smooth transition between CAP periods.
Minister McConalogue said, “I am pleased to confirm that the European Commission has this morning formally adopted Ireland’s draft CAP Strategic Plan for the period 2023 – 2027.
This is another important milestone in the finalisation of the Plan. In particular, this will give clarity to farmers to help plan ahead over the next decade.”
The Minister also emphasised that further steps remain before the Plan is finally approved by Government.
He said, “While today’s earlier than expected adoption by the Commission is welcome, there remain a couple of further steps to undertake. The first of these is for my Department to finalise the Strategic Environmental Assessment and Appropriate Assessment, taking account of the changes made to the draft Plan over the course of the engagement with the Commission in recent months. This work is well advanced, and when completed, I will then bring the adopted CAP Strategic Plan and environmental assessments to Government for final approval.”
Concluding, the Minister said: “The final CAP Strategic Plan will meet the twin objectives of ensuring the continued viability of family farms and maximising the environmental and social sustainability of the sector.
“It is the outcome of a long collaborative process with all stakeholders and demonstrates the commitment of my officials and the European Commission to develop a plan that will ensure the economic, environmental and social sustainability of the sector for the next five years.
“This is a farmer-friendly and well funded CAP. The funding allocation of almost €10 billion also underlines the commitment of this Government to farmers, and to the wider rural economy.”