On 22 June 2026, the Council approved conclusions on the European Court of Auditors' Special Report No 03/2026, which assesses the EU's POSEI programme for agriculture in the outermost regions. The Council notes the report, welcomes its recommendations, and invites the Commission to consider structural changes in traditional sectors when designing future funding.
The Council notes the Special Report, which evaluates whether POSEI effectively addresses the specific needs and constraints of the agricultural sector in the EU's outermost regions. It welcomes the Court's recommendation, accepted by the Commission, to review traditional activities in these regions together with the member states concerned. The Council also takes note of two other recommendations accepted by the Commission: to identify ways of improving crop and livestock diversification with the member states concerned, and to better assess how import support benefits are passed to end users via best practices sharing.
The Council shares the view that the report is a timely and valuable analysis. It acknowledges that outermost regions face more challenging conditions and that POSEI is an important instrument. The Council invites the Commission to consider structural changes in traditional sectors when designing funding. It also salutes the Commission's intention to emphasise fair farmer income and fair support distribution.
No prior coverage of this file exists in the last 180 days, so this is a standalone development. The Council's conclusions set the stage for the Commission to adapt the POSEI programme, with potential impacts on farmers in the outermost regions, national authorities of the nine outermost regions (such as France, Spain, Portugal), EU consumers who may see changes in prices or availability of regional products, and EU taxpayers funding the programme. The Commission is expected to follow up on the recommendations in its future policy design.