Following weeks of talks, agreement on Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) reform has now been reached. 

The CAP will cost the European taxpayer around €384 billion for the 2014-20 period, maintaining its status as the biggest single expenditure in the EU.

One of the original goals of the latest round of CAP reform was to “green” the huge payments that are given to farmers to secure greater public benefits, such as clean water and biodiversity, in return for massive public investment.  

The Scottish Wildlife Trust's Director of Conservation Jonathan Hughes said:

“The Scottish Wildlife Trust hasn’t seen the radical reform of land management payments that we were hoping for.

“Sadly, this is another page in the catalogue of missed opportunities to turn around the ongoing decline in the quality of Europe’s natural environment. 

“It is becoming increasingly hard to justify to the taxpayer what the hundreds of billions of pounds worth of public payments for farmers are actually buying.

“Really sensible measures such as mandatory “Ecological Focus Areas” (EFAs) have been watered down to the extent that they will be almost meaningless. 

“Now only 5% of a farm’s total area will have to be EFA to qualify for direct subsidy, however, almost every farm already meets this description because of features like hedges and streams.

“We are also disappointed that the Water Framework Directive and the Sustainable Use of Pesticides Directive will not be included in statutory management requirements to keep land in good condition – this will benefit neither wildlife nor agriculture which ultimately depends on a healthy environment.

“Thankfully, there is still the option for governments to transfer 15% of funds from direct payment budgets to support rural development measures, such as agri-environment schemes, but suggestions for transferring money from agri-environment schemes into direct payment budgets are most unwelcome and could prove disastrous for Europe’s biodiversity.

“The Scottish Wildlife Trust still firmly believes that the Common Agricultural Policy must be made much 'greener' to help restore Scotland’s ecosystems to health and protect our water, soils, biodiversity and landscapes.”