Reform 'huge step' to greener future

AFTER piloting his report on the reform of the Common Agricultural Policy through the European Parliament's agriculture committee, Scottish MEP George Lyon hailed it as a "huge step" towards a fair, sustainable and green future for the farming community.

"I'm delighted that the agriculture committee has fully backed the reforms I set out in my CAP report," he said. "The heart of the report – a fair, sustainable and green future for farming – has been safeguarded after months of building co-operation and coalitions across Europe. Scotland's agricultural sector needs the reformed CAP to be robust, and to strike a delicate balance between producing the food we need while competing in a competitive market place.

"Most importantly, the committee has supported maintaining the current CAP budget giving a stable platform to implement reforms."

But Lyon warned that is was clear that in future farmers and producers would need to do more with less. "That is why MEPs have voted in favour of linking farmers' direct payments to their efforts to cut carbon emissions," he said.