Financiarul

The debate was interesting and I am very happy to assess the Euro-deputies interest in the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), stated on Friday, in Brussels, the European Commissioner-designate for Agriculture, Dacian Ciolos, in a short press declaration immediately after the hearings in the respective committee of the European Parliament (AGRI).

All along the three-hour hearings, Ciolos outlined his priorities as future Commissioner in a 10-minute introductory speech, followed by replies to the AGRI members answers. The meeting was chaired by the president of this Euro-parliamentary committee Italian Paolo de Castro (S&D).

The hearings concluded approximately 10 minutes later than the initially established time, and Dacian Ciolos was applauded and congratulated by the Euro-parliamentarians several times during his opening speech, delivered in Romanian language, for his performance during the hearings, as well as at their end.

Ciolos preferred to answer in Romanian to the EMPs questions, but had answers in English and French, as well. He waived the five-minute final speech and chose to continue responding to some questions. “I do not know how many of the commissioners-designate received such applause. We are very pleased with the hearings”, noted Paolo de Castro, president of AGRI Committee, at the hearings end.

During the hearings, Ciolos emphasized the importance of the Common Agricultural Policy reform, spoke about the principle of an equitable distribution of the direct payments, approached the subject of the disadvantaged areas and the situation of small family farms and insisted on the rural development under Pillar II.

The Commissioner-designate informed the EMPs that, till this year-end, he plans to come up with a communication set to establish CAP main lines. But Ciolos insisted on the importance of the cooperation with the European Parliament and on the fact that he counts on a team of experts, with whom he is going to establish the mechanisms and criteria for the implementation of CAP reform.

Results of the hearings are conveyed to the European Parliament president and examined by the presidents’ conference – made of EP president and all the president of EP political groups – but also by the Conference of the committees presidents. President of the European Commission Jose Manuel Barroso will present later on the College of the commissioners-designate and their programmes during a plenary sitting of the Parliament, where the EU Council is invited.

The presentation is to be followed by a debate. In the final, EP gives its vote for the approval of the European Commission in its entirety on Jan. 26. Then, the new commission can be officially appointed by the Council, through qualified majority vote.