Opinion of the Advocate General — ECLI:EU:C:2008:589
Date: 2008-10-23
Language of the case: Estonian
Based on: Treaty establishing the European Economic Community (1957)
Subject matter: Agriculture and Fisheries;European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund (EAGGF)
Procedure: Reference for a preliminary ruling
Origin: Estonia

Summary of the Judgment Agriculture – Common agricultural policy – EAGGF financing – Support for rural development – Support for agri-environmental production methods (Council Regulation No 1257/1999, as amended by Regulation No 2223/2004, Arts 24(1), 37(4) and 39(3)) The provisions of Article 24(1) of Regulation No 1257/1999 on support for rural development from the European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund (EAGGF), as amended by Regulation No 2223/2004, read in conjunction with Articles 37(4) and 39 of that regulation, do not preclude a Member State from restricting, on account of insufficient budgetary resources, the class of recipients of rural development support to farmers already concerned by a decision to grant such support in the previous budgetary year. Having regard to the objective of Regulation No 1257/1999 which is designed to promote agri-environmental and rural development in general, the Member States must try to manage their financial resources adequately so as to enable each eligible applicant, within the meaning of that regulation, to benefit from rural development support. However, under Articles 37(4) and 39(3) of that regulation, the Member States may lay down further or more restrictive conditions for granting Community support for rural development, provided that such conditions are consistent with the objectives and requirements laid down in the regulation and that support measures may, where necessary, be subsequently revised by the Member States in order to ensure compatibility and consistency. Therefore, agri-environmental support programming is likely to evolve, since the adaptation of the scheme must be managed in accordance with the objectives of that regulation. Taking account of the background of insufficient budgetary resources recorded in the Member State concerned, the choice made by the national legislature in order to limit the class of farmers who were able to benefit from rural development support to farmers having already given agri-environmental commitments in the previous budgetary year is within the discretion available to the Member States under Regulation No 1257/1999. (see paras 38-40, 48, 54, operative part)