The European Parliament adopted by 643 votes to 28 with 12 abstentions a legislative resolution on the proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Council Regulation (EC) N° 1234/2007 as regards the regime of the single payment scheme and support to vine-growers.
Parliament adopted its position on first reading following the ordinary legislative procedure. The agreement was the result of a compromise negotiated between Parliament and Council. The main amendments are as follows:
Legal basis: Parliament specified that the legal bias of the text should be both the first subparagraph of Article 42 and Article 43(2) TFEU, as opposed to just Article 43(2) as proposed by the Commission.
Increase national ceilings for direct payments: in order to simplify the management of this specific support measure and to ensure its consistency with the objectives of the rules for direct support schemes for farmers, it is appropriate to convert it into the possibility for Member States to definitively decrease the funds allocated to the support programmes in the wine sector and thereby increase the national ceilings for direct payments.
Accordingly, by 1 August 2013, Member States may decide to reduce, from 2015, the amount available for the support programmes referred to in Annex Xb of Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007, in order to increase their national ceilings for direct payments referred to in Article 40 of Regulation (EC) No 73/2009.
The amount resulting from the decrease shall definitively remain in the national ceilings for direct payments referred to in Article 40 of Regulation (EC) No 73/2009 and shall no longer be available for the measures listed in Articles 103p to 103y.
Support to vine growers for 2014: a new clause states that Member States should be allowed to continue applying the support provided for in Article 103o of Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007 for 2014.