European Commission proposes smaller budget for agriculture

The European Commission proposed a new, reduced budget for the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). Poland would receive about 1 percent less on direct payments for farmers and about 25 percent less on the rural development fund. The budget will amount to €365 billion. It is 5 percent less than previously (with the conversion including 2 percent inflation), the agriculture commissioner Phil Hogan said. Out of those €265.2 billion will be allocated to direct payments for farmers, €78.8 billion to support rural regions, and €20 billion to support market measures. The countries where the level of agricultural development is lower, such as Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia will have increased subsidies, while for others they will be reduced.