The Irish Presidency must halt the fragmentation of the policy  and regulatory landscape for EU farmers

Today, Ireland assumes the Presidency of the Council of the European Union for the period until 31 December 2026. Under the slogan “Strength with Unity,” the Irish Presidency is committed to advancing European competitiveness, upholding European values, and strengthening European security.

While welcoming the Presidency’s commitment to a common, stable and fair Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), Farm Europe calls on the Irish Presidency to provide the political leadership needed to translate these ambitions into concrete decisions and avoid a fragmentation and inconsistencies of the policies and regulatory work streams. 

Multiannual Financial Framework 

The Irish Presidency commits to work intensively to advance agreement among Member States on the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) for the 2028–2034 period, laying the financial foundations for the Union’s policies and priorities in the decade ahead.

Discussions on the overall framework will be taken forward in the General Affairs Council, while sectoral components, including the National and Regional Partnership Plans (NRPPs) and the European Competitiveness Fund (ECF), will be progressed in the relevant Council formations.

The Presidency aims to hand over a sufficiently advanced negotiating box to the President of the European Council, enabling EU leaders to take the necessary decisions on the Union’s future financing before the end of 2026.

Post-2027 Common Agricultural Policy (CAP)

The Irish Presidency wants to place particular emphasis on food security, competitiveness, simplification, sustainability, and generational renewal as key priorities in shaping the post-2027 Common Agricultural Policy.

Work on the future framework of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) will be a central focus of the Irish Presidency. In this context, Farm Europe recalls that European agriculture requires a structurally sound, genuinely common and strategically coherent CAP. Such a policy must simultaneously ensure agricultural sovereignty and environmental progress, safeguard viable agricultural structures while facilitating generational renewal, and provide European farmers with the certainty and investment tools they need for the future. 

A CAP without genuinely common conditions and clear baselines risks undermining its own coherence and the internal market. A clear co-financing rate should therefore be the norm rather than the exception. Agricultural conditionality should constitute the baseline for EU-level requirements instead of a multi-speed farm stewardship that would create 27 or more cross compliances. In addition, a fully EU-funded environmental and production-oriented measure is necessary to ensure the financial credibility and balanced implementation of the policy across all Member States.

The Role of Livestock in European Agriculture

While the European Commission will present the livestock strategy in the first days of the Irish Presidency, Dublin wants to stress the importance of livestock production, taking into account the diversity of production systems and regional conditions across the Union. It will steer the discussions in the Council to explore how livestock farming can better contribute to economic and social objectives while addressing environmental and climate-related challenges.

With regard to animal welfare, the Irish Presidency will emphasise that rules must be firmly grounded in scientific and technical evidence, as well as informed by the experience and best practices of Member States.

Specifically regarding the animal transport file, five meetings have been scheduled on this issue, compared with three under the Cypriot Presidency. As a result, the pace of negotiations is expected to accelerate from July onwards. The Presidency’s immediate objective is to conclude the review of Chapter I, identify the articles and annexes for which the text has been finalized, and hold bilateral meetings to facilitate the continuation of the negotiations.

Environmental, Climate and Water Policy

The Irish Presidency is committed to the EU’s ambitious agenda to fight climate change and to shift to a climate-neutral economy by 2050. In 2026, the Commission will propose several legislative amendments and initiatives on climate law, on which the Presidency will work.

The key priorities announced in its programme are progress on the review of the ETS1 Directive, the revision of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), and the agreement and finalisation of strengthened ETS1 and ETS2 safeguards. The Presidency will also start discussions on the implementation package of the EU-wide 2040 emissions reduction target.

Farm Europe notes that the revision of CBAM and the extension of its scope have direct implications for agricultural inputs, in particular fertilisers, and will therefore require a careful assessment of impacts on the competitiveness of European farmers and urgent revision of the ETS-CBAM approach for fertilisers, taking into account better the specificities of agriculture and its potential contribution and challenges in the climate agenda. 

The Presidency also wants to support the development of high-integrity frameworks for private investment in carbon removals and nature restoration. In order to bridge the biodiversity finance gap, a key focus of the Irish Presidency is to shape the debate on biodiversity credits and developing principles of ecological integrity, additionality, social safeguards and permanence to prevent greenwashing. This aspect has direct relevance for farmers given its links to carbon farming and the CRCF framework.

The Irish Presidency will work to strengthen freshwater resilience across the EU, supporting the implementation of the European Water Resilience Strategy. Key areas of focus will be advancing the three main objectives of the strategy: restoring and protecting the natural water cycle, building a water-smart economy, and security of supply.

As part of its broader approach, the Presidency will promote deeper integration of biodiversity, climate and water policies to amplify cross-sectoral benefits and strengthen EU resilience, recognising the need for sustainable and equitable management and protection of shared marine and freshwater resources.

The Presidency will also steer preparations for Council Conclusions ahead of the UN Water Conference. The conference will build on the past ten years of work on the implementation of Sustainable Development Goal 6 on Clean Water and Sanitation and will look to accelerate the delivery of tangible outcomes during the remaining years of the 2030 agenda.

Bioeconomy, Energy & Transport Policy

Within the agricultural Council, the Irish Presidency will discuss the bioeconomy strategy, reflecting its potential to support diversification, add value to primary production, and contribute to climate and environmental sustainability. The Presidency will host the Global Bioeconomy Summit in October 2026, which will provide an opportunity to showcase European progress and initiatives on a global stage and to support international partnership for a sustainable bioeconomy. The Circular Economy Act will build on the second Circular Economy Action Plan and broaden measures accelerating the EU’s transition to a circular, low-waste and climate-neutral economy.

European energy markets have in recent years repeatedly proven to be directly dependent on external forces, and European citizens have repeatedly paid the price. The Irish Presidency wants to focus first and foremost on electrification, but believes that only through the unrelenting deployment of indigenous renewable and clean energy, supported by robust grids and a common ambition to electrify, will European countries, businesses and citizens achieve true energy security. A stronger focus on agricultural-based solutions would be welcome. 

On the AccelerateEU initiative and the Electrification Action Plan, and reflecting the One Europe, One Market Roadmap, the Irish Presidency will advance the EU’s energy agenda with the aim of delivering the European Grids Package and progressing the proposal on Energy Taxation. 

Through the work of the Transport, Telecommunications and Energy (TTE) Council, the Irish Presidency will prioritise progress on discussions on Clean Corporate Vehicles. Alongside the proposals relating to CO2 Emissions Standards for Cars and Vans and the revision of the Emissions Trading System for Aviation and Maritime, which will be discussed in the Environment Council. The Presidency will promote the EU position at the International Maritime Organization (IMO) with a view to the positive adoption and implementation of the IMO’s Net Zero Framework. 

Farm Europe believes that the Irish Presidency has a great opportunity to shape the future of European agriculture by restoring an ambitious common policy and overcoming the structural challenges of the initial proposal of the European Commission related to the CAP.