“OPEKEPE is in the final line to integrate into AADE”
Until 2 October, the Directorate -General for Agriculture and Rural Development of the European Commission in Greece is given to submit a new framework for agricultural subsidies as it is visible the risk of interruption of payments.
In a letter sent by the European Commission’s competent management, inter alia, the plan proposed by Greece is not sufficient to restore deficiencies and does not comply with the European provisions. He points out that if Greece does not comply, there is a risk of suspension of monthly and intermediate payments, that is, with suspension of agricultural subsidies.
Speaking on SKAI radio the Minister of Rural Development and Food Costas Tsiaras He said that “the deadline concerns the submission of a new plan, which is apparently incorporated into the implementation of the Action Plan” and stressed that there is no risk of European funding for agricultural subsidies.
He noted that the steps to be taken to consolidate OPPEKE are in full consultation with the European Commission and “there is an absolute agreement on all that is being done”.
The responsible minister added that since last September, in consultation with the Directorate -General for Agriculture and Rural Development of the European Commission (DG AGRI) it has been drawn up “an action plan concerning whether OPEKEPE will be able to take these specific steps that will no longer have it. Either by the logic of bad payments or with the logic of bad controls. Events that were the main reason and the most important reason we had the imposition of fines. “
He added that since this proposal has been made new issues such as “OPEKEPE has been in the final line to integrate into the AADE”, adding that the process is incorporated in the process “and other elements such as necessary the element of the identity of the property, the so -called ATAK, that we should not make the payroll and that we must pay payments. Sample checks in the past. “
Regarding the incorporation of OPEKEPE in the AADE, the Minister of Rural Development and Food said that “we have already agreed with the European Commission for a six -month extension of the action plan precisely to take all these steps. Next time they will predict the new form of OPECEPE, which must obviously be under surveillance, and thus the approval, of the European Commission. “
He noted that in order to consolidate the payment organization “some very tough decisions need to be made and to incorporate procedures that have not existed in the past” while assuring that farmers waiting to be paid would not lose their money.
Finally, speaking about the zoonoses, Mr Tsiaras stressed that “a vaccine for smallpox has not been applied to any European country and also as much as we know there is no European vaccine” while this would create, as he said, “a problem in the exports of dairy products from Greece, especially to the feta”.
“It is very crucial to all understand that if we apply a vaccination, which at least the scientific data exists, it generates immunity to only 60% of vaccinated animals and automatically creates a huge problem because for the remaining 40% it is not possible to know if any antibodies it is.”