UFU members will be claiming for the Single Farm Payment under the current arrangements in 2010, 2011 and 2012. But in 2013 you will be claiming support under whatever the new arrangements turn out to be.
With the Single Farm Payment being such an important part of farm incomes, this is a crucial debate. The issue was discussed at this weeks UFU Executive Committee and UFU Policy Chairmen and Vice Chairmen will be meeting shortly to begin to define the UFU's stance on what the Single Farm Payment should be based on post-2013.
A number of significant events have already occurred in recent weeks.
UFU Chief Executive Clarke Black has travelled to Brussels to discuss the issue with senior EU Commission officials. Some ideas are beginning to emerge in Brussels about what the EU Commission are considering as options and we understand that Mariann Fischer Boel will make a major speech on the issue before she leaves office in the coming months. The future EU budget is also being negotiated and the CAP is being scrutinised closely.
UFU President Graham Furey said: "Now is the time to influence the debate on the future of the Single Farm Payment. Views on the format of the SFP and the future EU budget are beginning to emerge in Brussels and we will be lobbying to influence events and come up with the best possible outcome for Northern Ireland. Securing the maximum possible budget for agriculture in Northern Ireland will be a key issue. We will be discussing all this in detail at our UFU Policy Committees and then feeding our views into the decision makers in the Commission and in Government. This will obviously be a priority issue for us. Even though 2013 seems a long time away, it is right for the UFU to be holding this debate now so that we are clear about what we want and can influence events."