The European Commission published its recommendations for Member States to assist in the drafting of their CAP Strategic Plans.
In this sense, the Commission provided each EU country with tailor-made recommendations, accompanied by a communication. These aim to assist in the drafting of the national CAP Strategic Plans by identifying the key areas on which each EU country should focus.
The main objective is to ensure that CAP Strategic Plans strived to achieve the nine specific CAP objectives and is in line with the Grean Deal ambitions, specifically the targets set in the Farm to Form and Biodiversity strategies.
The Commission is tasked to approve the CAP Strategic Plans, once officially submitted by the Member States. During the approval process, which will be based on the criteria laid down in the future CAP strategic plan regulation, the Commission will use the recommendations as an important reference document to assess the plans.
The specific timeline regarding the CAP Strategic Plans, including the formal submission by Member States and the Commission’s approval, will depend on the outcome of the negotiations with the co-legislators. However, the Commission’s ambition is for a political agreement to be concluded by spring 2021. Member States would then have until 1 January 2022 to submit their plans. The Commission will work to scrutinise and approve the plans, in time for their application as of 1 January 2023.
Consult here the recommendations for all EU Member States.