Rural Development should not live off farming funds -Allister
26 March 2009
Rural development should not live off farming funds - Allister
Speaking in a debate in the European Parliament in Strasbourg on rural development, Traditional Unionist MEP Jim Allister suggested the Axis 3 spend of Rural Development Programme should be linked, not to the CAP, but to Cohesion Policy, as a means of avoiding its smash and grab raid on farming funds. Urban funding is so linked, so why not rural development funding, excluding direct farming aid, asked the Ulster Euro MP.
In the course of his remarks Mr Allister said:-
"Mr President, I welcome this report because it raises issues that need discussion.
I particularly endorse the sentiments of the rapporteur that rural development measures should not drain resources intended for direct payments to farmers. Hence I join in questioning whether rural development funding should be linked to the common agricultural policy at all, as this inevitably leads to depriving farmers of previous methods of funding. Whereas, if it were instead an inherent part of cohesion funding, there would not be that opportunity to poach farming funds.
Thus I welcome the declaration in the report that the population employed in agriculture should be the main focus of support measures under rural development policy. That balance has been distorted in many rural development programmes, including those affecting my region of Northern Ireland."
Notes to the Editor: Official figures received from DARD state that farmers contribute 240 million Euros to the £500m Rural Development Programme
