Three key adjustments to improve the post-2027 CAP’s EU added value
Making the two principles of “flexibility” and “commonality” work for a CAP with more EU-added value. A new Agora Agriculture policy brief outlines three adjustments to the European Commission’s proposal for the CAP post-2027 that would increase spending on environmental, climate and animal welfare objectives – spending with high EU added value.
The next Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) is at risk of a substantial reduction in its EU added value and thus of its societal legitimacy compared to today, according to a new policy brief by Agora Agriculture, the Institute for European Environmental Politics (IEEP) and Clingendael Institute. While the Commission's proposal gives Member States more flexibility in how they spend CAP funds, it offers only weak incentives to direct that money towards environment, climate and animal welfare measures – interventions with high EU added value. At the same time, it establishes common spending requirements for interventions such as coupled and degressive area-based income support (DABIS) that contribute far less to shared EU objectives.
The brief finds that under the current proposal, the minimum budget required for DABIS alone would make up over half of the CAP budget in more than a third of Member States. Together with an increased number of mandatory interventions that also bind funding, this leaves little room for environmental spending. Moreover, maintaining current levels of spending on eco-schemes and agri-environmental and climate measures would require Member States to nearly double their national co-financing contribution – Germany, would need to almost triple its contribution.
Three adjustments along the spectrum between “flexibility” and “commonality” would increase the CAP’s EU added value. First, removing the minimum spending requirement for DABIS would increase the flexibility to spend more on the environment. Second, lowering national co-financing rates would incentivise environmental spending without reducing flexibility. Third, ringfencing a minimum share of the budget for environmental, climate and animal welfare objectives would strengthen the CAP’s common nature.
Together, these adjustments would improve the next CAP’s contribution to EU added value while reducing the burden on national budgets. As the brief concludes, what matters is not simply how much “flexibility” or “commonality” the CAP entails, but that these principles are applied in a way that increases the CAP’s EU added value.
The 17-page policy brief "Making flexibility and commonality work for more EU-added value - Three ways to increase environmental spending in the next CAP" is available for free download below.