WRITTEN QUESTION P-1849/03 by Kyösti Virrankoski (ELDR) to the Commission. Buying and selling of farms and agricultural reform.
Date: 2003-05-26
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: acquisition of property, agricultural land, agricultural real estate, aid to agriculture, farmers' income, grouping of farms, reform of the CAP, tenant farming, transfer of farms

6.2.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 33 E/177

A man coming to give blood has to say whether he has ever been in a sexual relationship with another
man. If the answer to that question is ‘yes’, he is automatically denied the right to give blood, even though
he might satisfy the other criteria. If the answer is ‘no’, he can give blood if he satisfies the other criteria.

Directive 2002/98/EC (1) of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 January 2003 setting
standards of quality and safety for the collection, testing, processing, storage and distribution of human
blood and blood components says nothing about the sexual orientation of donors and how it might affect
the prospects for becoming a donor.

Will the Commission standardise the practices applying to blood donors in the different Member States so
as to ensure compliance with Article 21 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights?

(1) OJ L 33, 8.2.2003, p. 30.

Answer given by Mr Byrne on behalf of the Commission

(25 June 2003)

It is of the utmost importance that, in order to safeguard public health and to prevent the transmission of
infectious diseases to patients, all precautionary measures are taken prior to as well as during the
collection, processing, distribution and use of blood and blood components donated by European citizens.
It was bearing this in mind that the Parliament and the Council adopted Directive 2002/98/EC of
27 January 2003 setting standards of quality and safety for the collection, testing, processing, storage and
distribution of human blood and blood components and amending Directive 2001/83/EC, in order to
ensure a high level of human health protection,
the Treaty of
Amsterdam.

in accordance with Article 152 of

Article 29 of Directive 2002/98/EC obliges the Commission to develop technical requirements concerning
inter alia the information that must be obtained from those willing to donate, as well as their suitability to
be blood and plasma donors, which includes permanent and temporary deferral criteria. These technical
requirements, now under development, take fully into account Council Recommendation 98/463/EC of
29 June 1998 on the suitability of blood and plasma donors and the screening of donated blood in the
European Community (1) which recommends the permanent deferral of prospective donors who may have,
or have a history of, sexual behaviour placing them at a high risk of transmitting infectious diseases. Once
these technical requirements will apply equally to all blood donors
adopted by the Commission,
throughout the Union.

(1) OJ L 203, 21.7.1998.

(2004/C 33 E/180)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-1849/03

by Kyösti Virrankoski (ELDR) to the Commission

Subject: Buying and selling of farms and agricultural reform

(26 May 2003)

The Commission proposal to reform EU agricultural policy provides for, among other things, single farm
support decoupled from production. The amount of support would be determined according to the CAP
aids paid in the years from 2000 to 2002. The support would not be linked to the land area.

The proposal has led to great uncertainty among farmers who are buying or selling farmland because it is
not clear from the text proper, any more than from other documents, what proportion of the single farm
support, if any, is passed on when a farm changes hands. The same problem applies to land tenancy. There
is also a question mark over farming partnerships. For example, a farm might have been run during the
reference period on a partnership basis, and received the corresponding agricultural support, but later,
following a transfer of ownership,
the land might have been divided among the partners and the
partnership might have ceased to exist.

C 33 E/178

Official Journal of the European Union

EN

6.2.2004

The problem affects the whole of EU territory, irrespective of the Member State, and has been brought
about entirely by the Commission. Hundreds of thousands of farmers are facing a dilemma. Farmers do
not dare and do not know how to draw up deeds of sale, tenancy agreements, or partnership agreements.
The situation is causing difficulties particularly for young farmers who are in the process of buying or
extending their farms.

What steps will the Commission take to dispel the current confusion?

What kind of clause should be included in a deed of sale, partnership agreement, or tenancy agreement if
the intention is to share out the CAP aid for the farm to be made over in proportion to the land areas?

Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission

(27 June 2003)

The Commission is of the opinion that, where the proposal of the single farm payment caused problems of
confusion among farmers, these problems are not inherent in the proposal itself and would, therefore,
have to be solved through information. The Commission will undertake further efforts in this respect.

The Commission proposal on the single farm payment foresees clear rules.

As regards the establishment and allocation of payment entitlements, it foresees the following:

(cid:1) A farmer’s reference amount will be calculated as the three years average of total amounts he received

from a defined number of support schemes during the reference period of 2000-2002.

(cid:1) Transferable payment entitlements are established by dividing the reference amount by the three years

average number of all hectare that gave right to payments during the reference period.

(cid:1) Entitlements can be transferred with or without land.

(cid:1) Payments will be made only for those entitlements that are accompanied by a hectare of eligible land.

(cid:1) Entitlements that remain unused for more than limited years would go to the national reserve.

Entitlements are generally allocated to those active farmers who claimed payments during the reference
period. Only in defined number of hardship cases, farmers not meeting this general criterion, could get
entitlements from the national reserve.

The above-mentioned principles are maintained in the case of heritage where the heir takes the place of
the original beneficiary. Furthermore, the Greek presidency has proposed that in cases of new farm co-
operations the new enterprise would get the entitlements and that in the case of scissions during the
reference period the entitlements would be allocated on a pro rata basis.

No provision has been made attaching payment entitlements to land ownership. This implies that land
transfers are generally independent from transfers of payment entitlements. It is up to the contract partners
to decide whether or not they want to lump both together. In other words,
land transfers leave an
individual farmer’s entitlements unaffected, unless he agrees with his contract partner to transfer the
entitlement together with the land.

As regards the clauses by which such transactions would be put in place, the concrete formulation would
be a matter of national law and private contract.