RTL Today - Parliamentary debate: Luxembourg's farmers will not lose out under new agricultural policy, EU commissioner insists

Luxembourg-born EU Commissioner for Agriculture Christophe Hansen said national farmers will not lose 20% of their funding under the reformed EU-wide policies, as stipulated by critics.

Hansen addressed Luxembourg's parliament on Monday to clarify the impact of the upcoming Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) reforms, following widespread criticism across Europe earlier this year, including scepticism from his cousin, Luxembourg Agriculture Minister Martine Hansen.

On paper, the new CAP framework appeared to show a loss of around 20% in funding for Luxembourg's farmers, but Hansen insisted this interpretation was misleading and that overall support would remain at comparable levels once all funding streams were considered.

He explained that the CAP consists of two main components, namely direct payments and rural development measures, and that, when taken together, the new system provides more flexibility and less bureaucracy, with greater room for national decision-making.

Hansen insists funding to remain stable

According to Hansen, around €300 billion of the total €386 billion EU agricultural budget has already been secured, representing about 80%. The remaining 20% is still earmarked for compulsory programmes, he said. Referring to the National Regional and Partnership Plans (NRPP), he noted that €453 billion remain unassigned. Even if only a quarter of that amount were eventually directed toward these compulsory programmes, he said, total support for agriculture would already exceed the current funding level.

Hansen also explained that Luxembourg has €200 million in reserve funds that can be channelled into rural development projects. Even if only half of this sum were used, Luxembourg's total agricultural support would already exceed its current level, he noted.

However, MP Yves Cruchten of the Luxembourg Socialist Workers' Party (LSAP) challenged the Commission's figures, arguing that the CAP reform effectively cuts €90 billion from farmers across Europe. He warned that telling farmers they can recover part of the loss through national funds is misleading, since those funds are already used to finance a wide range of other policies, and there is no guarantee that member states will actually provide enough to compensate.

MPs remain cautious

Another source of debate was the capping of subsidies at €100,000 per farm and the gradual reduction of payments for larger landholdings. Hansen countered that losses in this area could be offset through innovation grants or environmental schemes, which are designed to reward sustainable practices and modernisation.

On the environmental front, MP Joëlle Welfring of The Greens (déi gréng) expressed disappointment, arguing that the new CAP does not go far enough to support farmers' long-term sustainability or to tackle agricultural pollution. She highlighted recent findings from the European Environment Agency, which linked a significant share of environmental pollution to farming, and questioned what concrete steps the Commission planned to take to address these challenges. Welfring said the Hansen's response remained vague and lacked clear commitments.

The session also touched on trade policy, notably the pending EU–Mercosur agreement between Europe and several South American countries. Hansen said the deal presented both opportunities and risks, with potential growth for exports such as wine, spirits, dairy products, ham, cheese, and olive oil, while more sensitive sectors like sugar, poultry, and beef would face stronger competition.

Hansen is due to travel to Brazil on Tuesday as part of a trade delegation of around 80 European companies, including two from Luxembourg. to continue discussions on the Mercosur trade accord and its implications for European producers.