Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1315450
13 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 6 DECEMBER 2020 OPINION Standing strong for Maltese farmers in Brussels DURING the COVID-19 pan- demic, the importance of food security has become apparent now more than ever. Conse- quently, the need to safeguard the already struggling local ag- ricultural sector was also high- lighted. It is for these reasons that officials from the Ministry for Agriculture and techno- crats from the Permanent Rep- resentation in Brussels have been heavily involved in discus- sions and negotiations at Eu- ropean level to convince fellow technical experts and ultimate- ly the Council of Ministers, to take into consideration Malta's specificities. These efforts have been pivotal to reach a gener- al approach in the AGRIFISH Council of Ministers in the ear- ly hours of Wednesday 21 Oc- tober 2020. In all the interventions and negotiations, Malta explained its realities and rejected a one- size-fits-all solution. Although a small member state, Malta has managed to obtain impor- tant derogations and provisions to ensure the sustainability of the Maltese agriculture sector. Whilst managing to keep in line with the European Green Deal's ambitions as laid down by the European Commission, the Maltese delegations ensured that the interests of small farm- ers continue to be safeguarded through a dedicated budget and appropriate legal provisions. Through Malta's intervention in conjunction with like-mind- ed member states, the environ- mental efforts under the Eu- ropean Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) will now also be taken into con- sideration in the ringfencing calculations for eco-schemes. This means that Malta can make the best use of the re- sources available, in a manner which guarantees that farmers are provided with sufficient lev- els of income support and have greater flexibility in meeting the greening obligations. To further strengthen the income support for farmers, Malta has also managed to ensure flexi- bility between the two pillars of the CAP and subsidiarity in the allocation of funds. Malta managed to secure an ad-hoc derogation that main- tains the status quo for sectors benefiting from voluntary cou- pled support. This safeguards the recognition of Malta's ag- ricultural realities in ensuring that there is no discrimination linked to the location of agricul- tural land. Voluntary coupled support is provided for specif- ic types of farming or specific agricultural systems which are experiencing certain difficul- ties, and which are particularly important for economic and/ or social reasons. Support is provided to the extent neces- sary to maintain current levels of production. The scheme is of particular importance to Malta to sustain the dairy, meat and tomato for processing sectors. By reaching a general approach in Council, the Presidency now has a mandate to commence discussions with the Europe- an Parliament (EP). This will be the next hurdle for Malta in the European policy negotiation process. Malta's limited number of MEPs in the European Parlia- ment means that the 6 MEPs cannot physically cover all the EP Committees. Consequent- ly, it is no surprise that the text agreed upon in the European Parliament does not include the above local specificities which have already been included in the Council's text. Thus, from a European Parlia- ment perspective, one cannot disagree with Maltese MEPs like Dr Alfred Sant, who has been very outspoken in the me- dia for voting against the Euro- pean Parliament's text during the plenary. This is also due to the fact that the European Parliament text is not adapt- ed to the Maltese context and without the derogation of up to €3 million Voluntary Coupled Support for Maltese farmers, the collapse of the agricultural sector in Malta is likely. However, it is equally impor- tant to note that contrary to what has been written in the media in recent days, Mal- ta's specificities have already been secured in the Council of Ministers. Moreover, it is also worth noting that such a sce- nario has already taken place in 2012/2013 when the Euro- pean Parliament's Direct Pay- ments Proposal for the CAP Programme 2014-2020 did not include the Voluntary Coupled Support but eventually made it to the final text agreed between the three institutions. There- fore, while at this stage there is no room for alarm, it is not yet time to rest on our laurels. For this reason, the next move for the Maltese Government, is to hold meetings with Maltese MEPs to assist in convincing their party affiliates in the So- cial Democrats (S&D) and the European People's Party (EPP) groups to better understand Malta's specificities. Bilateral meetings are also being held with the European Parliament rapporteur and shadow rappor- teur of the CAP Strategic Plans Regulation, to better explain and defend what has been achieved in the Council with the ultimate aim being to convince the Euro- pean Parliament to compromise and agree on a common text during the upcoming trialogue negotiations, that best address- es Malta's specificities, as was also the case in 2013. In this situation, Malta shall stand united not just to safe- guard Malta's agricultural sec- tor for the coming seven years but to embark on the necessary reforms and modernise the sec- tor fit for the future! Bjorn Azzopardi Bjorn Azzopardi is policy director (PDPID) in the ministry for agriculture, fisheries and animal rights