Jack Thurston, our colleague across the pond, has been working to disclose farm subsidy payments with a consortium of journalists, academic researchers and NGOs. They maintain this incredible Web site.

Now Jack sends word that the latest data from the EU Commission show that Europe's largest farms are getting an ever greater share of taxpayer support through the Common Agricultural Policy. Jack says these big payments will rekindle debate to tighten subsidy limits for large EU farms in 2008--right after we fight that fight here in the USA.

New data released this week by the European Commission shows an increasingly unequal distribution of the EU's farm subsidies. The figures, which refer to the 2005 financial year, show that across the whole EU, 85 per cent of payments go to the largest 18 per cent of Europe's farms. In the previous financial year, 85 per cent of payments was shared among the largest 23 per cent of recipients. The figures also show that there are 910 more farms in the top bracket of recipients who receive more than €300,000 a year compared to the previous year.

There are two drivers of this increase in the uneven distribution of
payments. The first is the accession of the ten new EU member states in 2004. The second is the continuing consolidation of farms into larger units. Enlargement of the EU has brought in a large number of very small farms. Moreover, the new member states were only given a partial entitlement to farm subsidies, starting at 25 per cent in 2005 and rising to full parity with the EU-15 in 2013.

The new figures show that there are 2 790 farms receiving more than €300,000 a year, compared to 1 880 the previous year. It is widely expected that a payment cap of €300,000 will be proposed as part of the CAP 'health check' planned for 2008.