Govt lobbying for strong EU fisheries and CAP funding

RTÉ News​

5 days ago

The Government is lobbying for strong CAP and fisheries funding in the next seven-year EU budget as well as policies prioritising energy, connectivity and the digital sector, according to a Government policy paper issued to the European Commission which has been seen by RTÉ News.
The submission comes amid expectations of a bruising battle over CAP funding, with the Commission warning that the repayment of hundreds of billions of euro in Covid recovery loans - which begin to fall due in 2028 - will mean member state contributions may have to increase.
In the paper, the Government acknowledges that in 2028, when the next budget takes effect, Ireland will be the ninth largest net contributor out of 27 member states.
The Government wants to ensure that the massive boost in EU defence spending takes account of Ireland's geographical location on the western seaboard of Europe, a possible reference to the need to protect undersea cables.
The paper states that the EU budget should "[build] our security and defence capacity, recognising specificities of peripheral regions".
The paper, which cabinet approved this week, was presented to the EU budget commissioner Piotr Serafin by the Minister of State for European Affairs Thomas Byrne this afternoon.
The European Commission will unveil the first draft of the €1 trillion seven-year budget, known as the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), in July, with farming groups warning of massive protests if CAP funding is not protected.
The current CAP fund stands at €387 billion and is short of one third of the entire EU budget.
Commissioner Serafin has said that direct subsidies, currently worth €291 billion, should be untouched, but there was no similar promise for some €95.5 billion in rural development spending.
Ireland's EU Commissioner Michael McGrath this afternoon said that there was strong support within the Commission for protected CAP funding, but that no decision had yet been made.
He said the Commission had been in contact with farm organisations.
"We understand what their perspective is. In broad terms, they want the structure as it currently is to be maintained.
"But of course, they want a larger CAP and they want it to do more."
Mr McGrath warned: "In this MFF, we do need to provide for the capital repayments of the [Covid recovery] loans to kick in in 2028. That's a very substantial amount of funding, perhaps €20 to €25 billion. That will have an impact.
"Member states will also need to reflect on the level of contribution that they are willing to make."
The Government appears to be frontloading farmers and fishing organisations in its lobbying effort.
"For Ireland, the following areas are of central importance in setting the EU's future expenditure," the paper states.
"A separate, strong and ring-fenced Common Agricultural Policy and Common Fisheries Policy."
The Government is also pushing for an EU competitiveness fund that "prioritises energy, connectivity and digital as critical enablers for improving European competitiveness.
Also highlighted are support for SMEs, public-private financing and a new seven-year Horizon R&D budget that "is stand-alone (and ring-fenced) and continues to support excellent research, transnational collaboration and innovation".
The Government wants to ensure there is "sustained financial, political and military support for Ukraine, while also preparing to support Ukraine's recovery and reconstruction".
It is understood that the Government has acknowledged that the security environment in Europe requires a major increase in defence spending.
However, the Government's argument will be that security is "intertwined with our prosperity", according to a senior source.
The Government wants to see the next MFF allow for "increased flexibility and adaptability to respond to emerging and evolving circumstances".
The paper adds there should be the "maintenance of development and humanitarian assistance in a sustained, long-term manner [and] external engagement with global partners, and support for peace and building social cohesion".
The government is also pressing for the simplification of EU regulations and "proportionality as indispensable elements to reduce administrative burdens".
Ireland will hold the rotating EU presidency in the second half of 2026, when the budget negotiations are expected to reach a crescendo.
It is understood the Government has been keen to appraise the Commission at an early stage of the budget negotiations of its priorities, in order to "be seen as an honest broker…especially when we [hold] the [EU] Presidency [in 2026]", according to a senior source.