Farm support, ceiling on
In 2006, the Danish Commissioner for agriculture, Mariann Fischer Boel, proposed a ceiling on farm support. The proposal was aimed at removing all support in excess of € 300,000, which as an example would only affect 41 Danish farms and estates.
A ceiling of 300,000 euros would affect 1000 farms in Germany and 330 in the UK. Germany and the UK are the two countries which have rejected a ceiling on farm support. In the EU’s largest agricultural country, France, only 30 holdings would be affected.
A ceiling on € 50,000 would only affect 1,3 % of the recipients in the EU but save 29 % of the agricultural budget.
Recipients of agricultural support are now in the public domain in most member states. The EU Court has outlawed a Commission website with all recipients. See the Court cases C-92/09 and C-93/09.
During the budget debate in 2006, the European Parliament voted down a proposal which would have abolished all support over 40 000 euros per unit. The proposal would have affected 8% of farmers in the EU but would have cut the budget by an estimated 40%.
See also Common Agricultural Policy, CAP