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Staghouwer skips consultations with EU ministers
Agriculture minister Henk Staghouwer (ChristenUnie) shone on Monday due to his absence during the agriculture and fisheries council of the agriculture ministers in the European Union. This raises eyebrows, as a decision on the derogation still has to be made at the beginning of September, while all signals are red.
The FD spoke with a spokesperson for the minister. According to this spokesperson, Staghouwer allowed himself to be 'represented by high officials'. The newspaper quotes the spokesperson: "Last week there were several talks about the derogation. You don't always have to drive two hours there and two hours back in the car to Brussels to talk." Staghouwer would be busy with the 'perspective letter on the future of agriculture'. Staghouwer has promised to send it to the House before Budget Day, since the House did not consider the previous perspective letter of 10 June to offer any perspective.
Ministers want rapid approval of national CAP plans
Several European agriculture ministers met on Monday. The derogation of the Netherlands was not a separate item on the agenda, but they did discuss the implementation of the new CAP. Ministers insisted that the national strategic plans and exemptions for certain Member States (including the derogation) be approved as soon as possible. In fact, this was supposed to happen before the summer. According to the ministers, it is important to provide farmers with clarity quickly, as they are confronted with sky-high input costs and shortages.
Another topic of discussion was the impact of the Russian war against Ukraine on current sustainability plans. The ministers present underlined that a way must be found between the objectives in the field of the environment, climate and biodiversity on the one hand and guaranteeing food security on the other. One of the sustainability plans is the target to halve the use of plant protection products in the EU by 2030. The ministers are happy with green resources, but according to them there must first be enough sustainable alternatives and the differences between Member States must be taken into account. According to the ministers, sustainability should not be pursued at the expense of food security or the competitiveness of European agriculture.
Linda van Eekeres
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