Memorandum by the National Farmers' Union
1. The National Farmers' Union (NFU) represents
approximately 55,000 farmers and growers in England and Wales.
European policies and most notably the Common Agricultural Policy
(CAP) shape the environment within which our members operate.
As such, EU developments are of the utmost interest for our organisation.
2. The EU Reform Treaty signed in Lisbon
in December 2007 amends some of the existing framework within
which EU policies are proposed, adopted and implemented while
confirming and reinforcing other aspects of the institutional
and policy set-up. The ultimate objective of the Reform Treaty
is to make an EU of (at least) 27 members work more effectively—an
objective that becomes particularly relevant in an area, like
agriculture, given the ongoing process of policy reform and recent
market developments and structural changes.
3. It is important to highlight that, despite
the many changes embedded in the Reform Treaty, both the objectives
of the CAP and the rationale for a common agricultural policy
remain unchanged. The objectives of the CAP, laid down in Article
33 (ex Article 39), have not been modified and remain:
(a) To increase agricultural productivity
by promoting technical progress and by ensuring the rational development
of agricultural production and the optimum utilization of the
factors of production, in particular labour.
(b) Thus to ensure a fair standard of living
for the agricultural community ....
(c) To stabilise markets.
(d) To ensure availability of supplies.
(e) To ensure that supplies reach consumers
at reasonable prices.
The NFU believes that these objectives are neither
irrelevant nor mistaken and especially once other article provisions
(such as the incorporation of environmental protection into all
European policies, via the Single European Act, 1987 in Article
174 (ex 130(r)) are taken into consideration.[1]
It is the NFU's belief that these objectives are particularly
relevant given tighter agricultural markets (as a result of demographic
pressures and supply constraints) and expected increased market
volatility.
4. Similarly, the Reform Treaty confirms
(see Article 32 (ex 38) of the Treaty) the very reason for the
existence of a common agricultural policy: The common market
shall extend to agriculture and trade in agricultural products.
In the 1950s agriculture was subsidised in all countries of Western
Europe (including of course the UK) but by different methods and
to differing degrees. In order to allow free trade within the
common market without distortion, there had to be a common policy.
This justification remains to this day.
5. Moreover, since environmental protection
became a European issue, it can be argued that there is a further
need to ensure that the environmental constraints on agriculture
(most notably through cross-compliance requirements) are also
broadly equal throughout Europe, in order to avoid competitive
distortions.
6. The Reform Treaty further strengthens
the role of the European Parliament in farm policy by increasing
the role of the European Parliament in the design of agricultural
policy (through the extension of the co-decision procedure beyond
agricultural issues related to human health or the environment)
and in its budgetary procedure (where in addition to approval
by the EU Council, assent from the European Parliament will also
be required in order to adopt the EU agricultural budget). The
NFU welcomes the extent to which these measures address the criticisms
of "democratic deficit" levied against the European
Union. However, the increased role of the European Parliament
can also have other less positive and/or unpredictable results.
In this respect, it should be noted that the increased role of
the European Parliament is expected to result in a longer decision-making
process and that its effect on the content of policies is more
difficult to ascertain—while some claim that a legislative
voice for agriculture would potentially tailor Parliament's dossiers
to suit more closely the needs of farmers, others believe that
another set of opinions into the melting pot of the decision-making
process will water down action and increase political compromises.
7. The NFU believes that the additional
stability provided by a permanent President of the European Council
will provide the continuity to the policy agenda necessary to
tackle some of the challenges facing the EU in the years ahead,
including CAP reform, globalisation and climate change.
8. The new "double qualified majority
voting', to apply from 2014 to agricultural policy, will take
better account of population, a move that will give more clout
to countries such as Germany and the UK. Although this alteration
to the balance of power within the Council might result in a more
pro-active policy agenda, when analysed in conjunction with the
increased role of the European Parliament highlighted above, the
results are less certain. The NFU believes that the new system
is simpler than the "triple majority" voting system
of the Nice Treaty, fairer and more transparent.
9. The Reform Treaty gives national parliaments
a voice in making European laws for the first time and result
in the review (if one third of the national parliaments considers
the proposal in break of the subsidiarity principle) or rejection
of the proposals (if a majority of national parliaments object).
This provision is expected to have a clear impact on all areas
of joint competence with relevance for the farming sector (including
environmental policy, energy policy or competition policy), ensuring
that the Community only acts in areas where it adds value.
10. Article 136a (and the associated amendments
to Articles 138 and 139) are intended to enhance labour negotiations
in the framework of tripartite dialogues (involving employer delegates,
employee representatives and government or government appointed
representatives). Although welcoming the principle, the NFU believes
that the impact on labour relations in the agricultural sector
(and most notably on the operation of the Agricultural Wages Board)
is, especially in light of the UK-specific protocol, at most,
marginal.
11. By introducing the possibility of citizens"
initiatives, the Reform Treaty further reinforces the link between
EU citizens and the policy-making process. Given that any policy
proposal initiated by a citizens" initiative will be subject
to the same internal debate and scrutiny as any initiative by
the EU Commission, the move is welcomed by the NFU.
12. The Reform Treaty reduces the size of
the Commission after 2014, limiting the number of Commissioners
to 2/3 of member states. Assuming that the position of Commissioner
for Agriculture and Rural Development remains unchanged, the NFU
believes that a reduction in the number of Commissioners can contribute
to the coherency of policies.
December 2007
1 The Amsterdam Treaty (1997) reaffirmed the EU commitment
to sustainable development and to high levels of environmental
protection-the environment must be integrated into the definition
and the implementation of all the Union's other economic and social
policies, with a view to promoting sustainable development. Back
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