The five Irish Fine Gael MEPs have confirmed that they will vote in favour of the EU’s proposed Nature Restoration Law at the European Parliament in Strasbourg today (Tuesday, February 27).
The proposed law, which has come in for criticism from farm organisations and politicians, plans to restore at least 20% of the EU’s land and sea areas by 2030 and all ecosystems by 2050.
In a plenary (full) session of the parliament today, MEPS will decide whether to accept an agreed compromise position on the law, which was reached between representatives of the parliament and council of the EU in the ‘trilogue’ process last November.
If the Nature Restoration Law achieves the required number of votes, it will then proceed to a meeting of the council of environment ministers next month for final ratification.
Fine Gael
The European Peoples Party (EPP), of which Fine Gael is a member, has said that it will vote against the proposal.
However, the Irish MEPs are set to defy this position and vote in favour of the Nature Restoration Law.
Seán Kelly, Frances Fitzgerald, Deirdre Clune, Maria Walsh and Colm Markey said that the final agreement achieves a balance between action to improve biodiversity, while safeguarding food security.
The added that the proposal guarantees that restoration measures will be voluntary for farmers.
Ireland South MEP Seán Kelly said that the Fine Gael MEPS maintain “that action to restore nature in Ireland cannot happen without the support of the agricultural community and industry”.
“Farmers and fishers are the custodians of our environment and they recognise the need to take action to tackle biodiversity loss.
“It is clear, however, that many in the agricultural community have concerns with the proposed law, so it is important that we get the communication of the flexibilities secured right.
“Food security is now a central objective of this regulation and this has been assured by amendments from the parliament,” he said.
Kelly said it needs to be made “abundantly clear” that the proposed law is “not some sort of land grab”.
“Obligations to deliver on this law do not lie with individual farmers and landowners.
“It is up to the government to lead on restoration measures, assisted by farmers who can choose to take voluntary measures outside of these areas – and they will be financially assisted if they do so.
“The government has stated that voluntary commitments by farmers will not impact their eligibility for payments under the CAP or other EU schemes,” he added.
Kelly said that “no farmer will be forced to hand over any land under the requirements of this legislation”.
“When it comes to rewetting, it is true that this law proposes legally binding targets for restoration of drained organic soils under agricultural management.
“However, the European Parliament has achieved enhanced flexibility for Ireland when it comes to rewetting and the Irish government has outlined that state lands will be available to contribute to almost all of the rewetting commitments laid out in the text,” he said.
If the Nature Restoration Law is adopted, the MEP said that the next stage of the process will be an in-depth consultation with farmers and fishers.
Vote
Fine Gael MEP Colm Markey said he will vote in favour of the proposal having received a number of clarifications from European Commission Vice President Maros Sefcovic, who took over from Frans Timmermans as EU Green Deal chief last year.
“His office has confirmed to me that single farm CAP payments will not be impacted by the Nature Restoration Law, while the proposal also supports extensive farming practices such as sheep grazing on mountain sides,” he said.
“Overall, the text has significantly improved from the original proposal which I voted against when it came before the Agriculture Committee in 2023.
“Any restoration measures will be voluntary and farmers will receive compensation from a dedicated fund, which must come from outside CAP,” Markey added.
The MEP said that the “polarised nature of this debate could have been avoided” if the EU Commission, which tabled the proposal initially, had “engaged with farmers and not dictated to them”.
“I hope lessons can be learned from this chapter and that stakeholder engagement becomes a priority in the future,” the Midlands-North-West MEP said.