NFU cautiously welcomes new agricultural transition policy

Under the plans put forward by Defra, subsidies for farmers will be reduced from next year and replaced with payments to protect the environment.

While acknowledging Defra has embraced many of the industry’s ideas for sustainable farming and food production, NFU president Minette Batters is concerned at the rate at which direct support reductions will take place.

“Farming is changing and we look forward to working with ministers and officials to co-create the schemes that will help farmers to improve productivity and animal welfare, encourage innovation and realise our ambition to produce increasingly climate-friendly food," she said.

“However, the rate at which direct support reductions will take place, which we understand will not be applied in other parts of the UK, leaves English farmers with significant questions. These payments have been a lifeline for many farmers especially when prices or growing conditions have been volatile and will be very difficult to replace in the first four years of this transition. Can ministers be sure that new schemes will be available at scale to deliver redirected BPS payments?"

The changes to agricultural policy after Brexit, which will be brought in over seven years up to 2028, are being seen as the most significant change to farming and land management for England in more than 50 years.

The new roadmap from Government spells out how "direct payments", paid out under the basic payment scheme for the amount of land farmed, will start to be reduced from 2021 on the way to being phased out by 2028.

The Government has committed to maintaining the £2.4 billion per year for farming over this parliament, but plans to halve the £1.8 billion paid in direct payments by 2024, with the biggest reductions in the highest payment bands.

The £900 million saved will go towards introducing an "environmental land management" (ELM) scheme which will reward farmers for sustainable farming practices, creating new habitats and even rewilding land.

There will also be funding for a farming investment fund, which will offer grants for equipment and technology such as robots and new infrastructure such as water storage on farms, and which will open from next year.

A resilience programme will help those most affected by the phasing out of direct payments to help farmers plan and manage their businesses, and there will be a consultation on lump sums for those who want to exit the sector altogether.

“Take livestock farmers for example, who we project will have lost between 60 per cent and 80 per cent of their income by 2024 as a result of these reductions," Mrs Batters said. "What changes will Defra make to ensure that the new Environmental Land Management schemes offer rewards that provide a genuine income for their businesses while maintaining food production?

“These are the questions Defra needs to answer urgently, for every farming sector and every part of the country.

“Expecting farmers to run viable, high-cost regulatory farm businesses, continue to produce food and increase their environmental delivery, while phasing out existing support and without a complete replacement scheme for almost three years is high risk and a very big ask.

“There are also many uncertainties during this policy transition, not least new trading arrangements after we leave the EU, as well as the national recovery from Covid-19, and the global challenge of climate change. Moreover, the long-running price war in UK retail often sees farming and growing caught in the crossfire.

“So ministers must bear these challenges in mind and use the transition period to address abuses of market power which not only damage farm businesses but also consumer choice and availability. They must also be mindful of the impact sudden drops in income could have, including seriously jeopardising the viability of a farm business and causing knock-on impacts for domestic food production."

Environment Secretary George Eustice said: "We want to take this opportunity to change direction. To make more space for nature within our farmed landscape again.

"And to reward farmers in a different way for farming sustainably rather than just doling money out based on how much land they own."