We were delighted when Mariann Fischer Boel, EU Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, kindly agreed to write an article for the Irish National Rural Network web site. Miss Fischer Boel has been European Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development since November 2004.

I often like to say that the beating heart of the European Union is rural. Certainly, Europe has some of the most magnificent and best-loved cities in the world, but our wonderful landscapes – shaped largely by farming – are also a big part of our cultural heritage. Rural areas actually cover about 90 % of the EU’s territory, they are home to nearly 60 % of its population and they make a strong contribution to our economy, through farming and other activities.

If much of the character of the EU is rural, this is surely true of Ireland – the Emerald Isle, a country which I’ve so enjoyed visiting in the past and in which nearly 12 % of the labour force is active in farming in some way.

This is why Ireland has been a great friend to the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) – a policy which has a long and colourful history but is walking determinedly into the future.

I think the message is getting through to a lot of people that the CAP actually works pretty hard in the service of everyone in the EU.

It still supports farmers’ incomes as in the past – in ways more in line with the public’s expectations in the 21^st century.

But beyond this, it does so much to help farmers sharpen their competitive edge, to care for our landscapes, to help create new jobs and basically to make life in the countryside viable and pleasant. These tasks are all part of the job description of the EU’s rural development policy, a growing part of the CAP.

Today, we’re in an economic crisis. Many people and most sectors have been feeling the strain, in cities and in the countryside.

At a time when belts are being tightened, it’s more important than ever to get top value from every euro of public money spent. Ireland’s Rural Development Programme needs to be well targeted so that it delivers the maximum help to those who really need it.

So I’m glad that Ireland has a strong track record in using rural development policy intelligently – to help its farmers, to nurture new opportunities in the countryside and to keep its green landscape in the best of health.

In terms of the policy’s financial balance sheet, let’s look on the bright side. The fact remains that, over the period 2007 to 2013, Ireland will get a basic allocation of € 2.3 billion from the EU budget for rural development – plus extra money from the European Economic Recovery Package and transfers from direct payments to farmers (via “modulation”). This doesn’t add up to small change!

With regard to the future of the CAP, I’ve given my personal view that rural development policy is where “a lot of the music will be in future”. It will do its share of the work of pulling us out of the economic crisis. And it’s also emerging as one of the main policy tools with which we can confront the challenges of climate change and water management, as well as seize the potential of renewable energy.

The European Commission will keep giving its support where necessary to help Ireland get the best out of rural development policy. And in my remaining months as a European Commissioner, I expect lively contributions from Ireland about the policy’s future!