Pressure on applicants to end land restrictions

Date: 23/09/1999

By Simon Taylor

EU GOVERNMENTS will challenge attempts by former Communist countries to shut foreigners out of their land markets at a high-level meeting next week.

Union officials will tell negotiators from the applicant countries that continuing their restrictions on purchases of farmland and building plots would be unjustified and would pose a barrier to much-needed foreign investment.

Next week's session will see the opening shots fired in what is bound to be a long drawn-out battle over the most sensitive issues which must be resolved before the Union can allow central and east European countries to join.

Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Estonia and Slovenia have all asked for long delays before they must allow EU citizens to buy agricultural and building land in their countries, with Warsaw pushing for an 18-year exemption and Hungary a ten-year delay. The move reflects fears that low land prices, in some cases running at only a tenth of EU levels, would allow rich westerners to snap up estates cheaply, pushing agricultural land beyond local farmers' price range.

But Union officials will question the need for such long delays at next Thursday's (30 September) meeting, arguing that land prices will not stay low indefinitely.

Enlargement Commissioner Günter Verheugen made the EU's opposition to any special concessions clear during his European Parliament confirmation hearing, insisting free movement of capital, including land, was part of the Union's established body of law (acquis). "When the applicant countries join they must accept the acquis", he told MEPs, adding that allowing foreigners to buy land was essential to attract investment and help new member countries improve their living standards.

At next week's talks with the six leading candidate countries, including Cyprus, officials will also discuss requests for exemptions from Union rules governing health and social insurance and energy market liberalisation.

EU governments will challenge attempts by former Communist countries to shut foreigners out of their land markets at a high-level meeting, 30.9.99.