(Reuters) -EU member states and the European Parliament have reached a provisional agreement on an overhaul of the EU’s huge farming subsidies, weakening environmental standards as part of plans to cut back regulations and paperwork for farmers.
The plans exempt smaller farmers from baseline requirements tying their subsidies to efforts to protect the environment, while the EU would increase the payments they can receive.
“This will help the agricultural industry grow and become stronger, boosting the sector’s competitiveness across Europe,” Denmark’s Minister for European Affairs Marie Bjerre said in a statement late on Monday.
Campaigners have said the changes would make farmers more vulnerable to climate change.
The EU Commission launched proposals for the overhaul in May, following months of protests by farmers over issues including strict EU regulations and cheap imports.
In response, the EU Commission had already diluted some green conditions attached to farming subsidies, and it went further in its new plans for the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP).
The Commission estimates the overhaul could save farmers up to 1.6 billion euros ($1.87 billion) per year, while on-site checks on farms would be limited to once per year.
The CAP is worth around 387 billion euros, around a third of the bloc’s total 2021-2027 budget.
The new plans are part of a series of EU “simplification omnibus” proposals, designed to slim down policies and paperwork for businesses struggling to compete with China and the U.S., where President Donald Trump is aggressively cutting regulation.
The provisional agreement now has to be formally adopted by the EU Council and the European Parliament.
($1 = 0.8575 euros)
(Reporting by Bart Meijer; Editing by Sharon Singleton)
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