An aggressive army of EU auditors incapable of understanding commonsense is undermining farmers’ efforts by imposing draconian fines for red tape mistakes, retiring Farmers’ Union of Wales president Gareth Vaughan said today.
He told the union’s annual general meeting in Aberystwyth that confidence remained high within the industry in spite of numerous broken promises by politicians over plans to slash red tape and bureaucracy.
"Despite ongoing concerns over the age profile of our farming population, the enthusiasm of our young and upcoming farmers is something which continues to fill me with confidence about our future.
"However, as I think back to how our industry was almost a decade ago, and re-read some of the assurances given to us over the years, it seems that this confidence exists in spite of a host of broken promises.
"Foremost amongst these are the regular assurances by those who govern us over cuts to red tape and bureaucracy, and the broken promises which have followed, with Brussels standing out as a clear winner in the race to go back on their word."
Mr Vaughan said that in January 2007 the European Commission presented its Action Programme for Reducing Administrative Burdens in the EU which, it claimed, showed "the way in which the Commission intends to work with Member States to cut administrative burdens on businesses by a quarter by 2012".
"But in the four and a half years since then, bureaucracy for farm businesses has escalated dramatically, coupled with draconian fines for those who make inadvertent and inconsequential mistakes," Mr Vaughan added.
"These fines are often implemented at the behest of an aggressive army of EU auditors which is seemingly incapable of understanding commonsense or proportionality.
"With just six months in which to ’cut administrative burdens on businesses by a quarter’ and more EU red tape in the pipeline, it is clear that this statement represents just another broken promise.
"Yet for my successor there may be some light on the horizon because the Lisbon Treaty now means that our elected representatives are answerable for such failings.
"It is down to us - not just as a Union but also as individual farmers - to hold them accountable for their actions or inactions."
