On Tuesday, May 7, Kaspars Gerhards, the Minister for Agriculture, will meet, Phil Hogan, the EU Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, who will be in Latvia on working visit.
Kaspars Gerhards, the Minister: “When talking with the Commissioner Phil Hogan, I will emphasize, once more, the requirements, most important for Latvia, regarding the necessary changes in the EU Common Agricultural Policy after 2020. We are still insisting that direct payments need to be adjusted, making them equal for all the Member States. When developing the new Common Agricultural Policy, it is particularly important to listen to the opinion of farmers’ community. It must be emphasized that at regional conferences, organized by the Ministry of Agriculture, fair EU payments were the most topical priorities for Latvian farmers. Just as, it is essential in the next programming period, to not reduce the funding provided for rural development although the current proposal from the European Commission envisages the 15 percent reduction. Besides, the proportionality must be ensured between the new conditions and the amount of financing available for farmers so that EU resources could be purposefully invested in the development of agricultural production.”
On May 7, in Riga, Kaspars Gerhards, the Minister and Phil Hogan, the EU Commissioner, will also meet representatives of Latvian agricultural organizations who will have an opportunity to express to the Commissioner directly their position on various issues, associated with the future of the EU Common Agricultural Policy.
On May 7, the Minister and the Commissioner will also participate in the international conference “15 out of 100. 15 years of the Latvian membership in the European Union”, held at Riga Castle.