In the previous post I presented two tables showing Pillar 1 and Pillar 2 payments per hectare by member state which were prepared by the Scottish Executive in support of its campaign to get a higher share of the UK CAP direct payments national ceiling. My focus was on the general story which the tables told on how payments per hectare are distributed across member states, but the tables also show the comparable figures for Scotland as if it were a member state. They show that Scotland expects to be at the bottom of the EU league in terms of Pillar 1 and Pillar 2 payments per hectare by the end of the next MFF period.
However, a press release issued by George Lyon MEP claims that the figures showing that Scottish farmers are poor relations in Europe are simply not credible. George Lyon represents the Liberal Democratic Party in Scotland which is a political competitor of the Scottish National Party which makes up the Scottish Executive.… Read the rest
Comparing support levels across countries
