PDF to HTML - Convert PDF files to HTML files

Finansudvalget 2010-11 (1. samling)
KOM (2011) 0500 Bilag 1
Offentligt

Ministry of Foreign and European

Affairs

Ministry of the Budget,

Public Accounts and State

Reform

Ministry of Agriculture, Food, Fisheries,

Rural Affairs and Spatial Planning

(Traduction de courtoisie)

Paris, 30 June 2011

Press release

The European Commission has put forward its proposals for the European Union’s financial

framework for the period 2014-2020.

With a proactive attitude, the French President and the Government were successful in focusing

the European debate on the common agricultural policy and the common fisheries policy. They

averted their dismantling and renationalisation. Stabilisation of the CAP budget and the common

fisheries policy in current euros is an important achievement in the difficult negotiation about to

begin among the Member States and with the European Parliament. The CAP will clearly remain

the leading policy area of the European Union. France will accept no financial framework that

does not guarantee such a stabilisation. The determination of the French President and the

Government in this respect is steadfast.

We take note of a number of Commission proposals that will have to be thoroughly examined. The

French authorities wish at this stage to emphasise the following points:

- The creation of a reserve to cover crises in the agricultural sector, which must be

responsive, supplements the first pillar regulation instruments needed for farmers

income stabilisation to cope with price volatility;

- The budget choice made by the Commission will limit the potential for undertaking a

certain redistribution of direct payments between Member States and their “greening”;

- The extension to farmers of the Globalisation Adjustment Fund in no way prejudges

current and future trade negotiations and France reiterates that it will refuse any trade

agreement that may jeopardise European agricultural interests.

Against the backdrop of very strong European and national budgetary constraints, France regrets

that the Commission is not proposing to apply the same fiscal discipline and reform effort to the

other policies that it is proposing for the CAP. France will strive to correct this in the upcoming

negotiations because time has come for better spending instead of more spending. The European

Union must share the effort made by Member States to achieve budgetary discipline. More

particularly,

- as regards cohesion policy, the Commission has not fully taken account of the fact that

some 20 regions have achieved a level of development making them no longer eligible

under the convergence objective: savings are possible;

- the sharp increase in funds earmarked for “competitiveness” is unacceptable at a time

when the implementation and the effectiveness of such funds are questioned and when

the Heads of State and Government have clearly called for in-depth reform: an increase

Press contacts

Alain Juppé press office -

Tel: +33 (0)1 43 17 53 93

Valérie Pécresse press office –

Tel: +33 (0)1 53 18 42 96

Bruno Le Maire press office -

Tel: +33 (0)1 49 55 59 74

PDF to HTML - Convert PDF files to HTML files

Ministry of Foreign and European

Affairs

Ministry of the Budget,

Public Accounts and State

Reform

Ministry of Agriculture, Food, Fisheries,

Rural Affairs and Spatial Planning

in the budget for this policy - especially to this extent - before having reformed it in

depth is not and option.

France has continuously called attention to the need to stabilise its contribution to the EU

budget. The Commission’s proposal does not meet this objective. The French national budget,

which is already devoting nearly €20 billion to the EU budget, cannot accommodate the nearly

€250 billion (i.e. almost 30%) increase in payments proposed by the Commission for the coming

period. France calls for annual payment appropriation ceilings to be set at a realistic level and to

cover all European expenditure (including large-scale projects such as ITER and GMES) in order

to constitute a genuine cap on their increase.

With regard to resources, France has always opposed rebates and cannot consider perpetuating

them. No extension is possible. What is required is more simplicity, transparency and fairness.

The Commission suggests the creation of new own resources. France is open to discussion on this

idea, on the condition that these resources would fully substitute for existing resources and that it

would thus reduce contributions paid out of national budgets. The type of own resource to be

selected should be carefully examined. France is willing to explore some of the solutions put

forward by the Commission, particularly the idea of a levy on a European share of an international

Financial Transaction Tax.

With respect to the distribution to be determined in line with overall spending control, the

European Union should have the appropriate level of resources to cover its external action,