Fischler keen to calm CAP fears

Date: 09/11/1995

By Michael Mann

EXTENDING the Common Agricultural Policy to the countries of Central and Eastern Europe (CEECs) will not be as costly as some commentators have claimed, Agriculture Commissioner Franz Fischler insists.

His White Paper on the agricultural aspects of enlargement, due to be presented at December's summit in Madrid, will estimate the cost to the Union's farm budget of taking in the CEECs at less than half the 38 billion ecu the Commission suggests may be needed to extend EU regional policies to up to 12 applicant countries.

Fischler's report will deny any direct link between enlargement and further CAP reform, but will nevertheless stress the necessity of moving EU prices closer to world market levels and paying farmers aid unrelated to what they produce.

The Agriculture Commissioner is also showing signs of backing away from his previous insistence that there should be no ceiling on the amount of aid received by an individual farmer.

But he is adamant that direct aid payments, such as those brought in under the 1992 CAP reform, will not be compromised in future world trade negotiations.

Fischler's vision of the future of the CAP does not envisage a social safety net, but rather foresees a wider policy encompassing all aspects of the rural economy.