On June 18th and 19th 2012, the Agriculture Committee Rapporteurs in the European Parliament presented their draft reports on the reform on the Common Agricultural Policy. One week on, on June 25th, these four draft plans were presented at a meeting between Agriculture Committee MEPs and representatives of national parliaments.
Following the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty, 2013 is the first time that the Parliament exerts full co-decision powers with the Council with regard to the CAP. This Interparliamentary Committee Meeting: European Parliament – national Parliaments will therefore form part of the new process, with national representatives to provide an input into the next legislative steps.
Ahead of the meeting, a document – The CAP Reform : The State of Play in National Parliaments – has been published which outlines the position of all Member States: a very useful resource.
Following the meeting, a press release issued by the Parliament stated that both the national parliamentarians and the European Parliament Agriculture Committee had agreed that the new EU farm policy must have a decent budget to provide for healthy farming practices that deliver a secure supply of high-quality food to all EU citizens.