Informal meeting of EU agriculture ministers in Brno

An informal meeting of EU agriculture ministers is underway in the Moravian city of Brno. The main issue on the agenda is a controversy over the current division of subsidies within the block and plans for equal payments after 2013. The EU states who joined in 2004 complain that five years after EU accession they are entitled to only 60 percent of the subsidies afforded to old members. Czech farmers say their livelihood is threatened due to unequal competition within the block and together with farmers in Poland and Hungary are pushing for equal payments before 2013. The governments of newcomer states are free to top up farming subsidies by another 30 percent from state coffers, but their generosity depends on the state of individual countries’ finances.