The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Simon Coveney TD, welcomed his Finnish counterpart Jari Koskinen to Dublin on Friday last. The Ministers had extensive discussions about the future of the Common Agricultural Policy and the upcoming Irish Presidency of the EU. Minister Koskinen was also shown an Irish beef and sheep farm in Co. Wicklow.

During the course of their meeting, Minister Coveney highlighted Ireland's priorities for CAP reform and explained our position in relation to the main issues. Speaking after the visit Minister Coveney said "we had a constructive discussion on the key issues in this dossier. We are both cognisant of the need for a strong and well-resourced CAP in the future and there is a great deal of commonality between us on major elements of the package such as greening and simplified procedures that will lessen the burden for administrations and for farmers."

The Ministers also discussed the process and timing for reaching agreement on CAP reform. Ireland takes over the Presidency of the European Council from 1 January 2013 and it is expected that CAP reform will be a major priority for our Presidency. The Minister underlined that Ireland was prepared to put a major effort into securing agreement during the Irish Presidency. Both Ministers agreed that, for this to happen, there would have to be substantial progress made this year on the parallel negotiations on the next multiannual financial framework for the EU budget. Moreover, there was a need for greater engagement within the EU Council of Agriculture Ministers and with the European Parliament.

Date Released: 06 March 2012

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