Hill farms set to have a reprieve from support cuts

Hill farmers and crofters in some of Scotland’s more remote and inhospitable areas are set to get a reprieve from cuts in support levels scheduled to come into play next year.

The move looks likely after the EU confirmed this week that plans to prohibit full payment under the Less Favoured Areas Support Scheme (LFASS) from 2018 onwards would now be delayed for a year. With a new scheme scheduled to come into play next year, it had been planned that CAP regulations would not allow LFASS to continue unchanged in 2018 – requiring either a move to Areas of Natural Constraint (ANC) scheme or to maintain the LFASS scheme with a “parachute payment” rate of 80 per cent of the previous year’s rate.

In March, Scotland’s rural economy secretary, Fergus Ewing announced that rather than change to a new system which was less well suited to Scotland - and which would have caused additional disruption before Brexit - that the “parachute payment” approach would be adopted as the “leastworst” option. However the European Commission now proposes to delay the LFASS changes until 2019, with the delay likely to be formally sanctioned by the EU in January 2018.

Speaking yesterday after the Scottish Government had revealed its draft budget, Ewing said that subject to the expected changes going ahead, 11,000 farmers were likely to benefit:

“LFASS is vital for our rural economy and remote communities, so I am delighted to confirm that hill farmers and crofters can expect to receive 100% of their entitlement for 2018 LFASS – rather than the previously announced 80%.

“With 85% of Scotland’s agricultural area classed as less favoured, future support for farmers and crofters is crucial to ensure the economic viability and sustainability of these remote areas.”

While 2018 payment will only be made in spring 2019, Ewing said that the situation for 2019 scheme payments remained unclear as the UK Government had yet to make an unambiguous statement on what funds would be available. The LFASS scheme is currently financed by both EU and Scottish Government funds. NFU Scotland welcomed the announcement stating it would help safeguard vital payments to many hill and upland farmers: “The Union has been seeking clarity and swift action from the Scottish Government over the last few months and is pleased to see that it has done just that,” said union vice president, Martin Kennedy. He said the re-instatement of the LFASS 2018 budget to £65 million was of significance in light of the downward pressure being put on many other areas of Scottish Government spending, adding that the union would work with Scotgov towards finding a solution for LFA support beyond 2018. l As the UK’S Brexit negotiators headed to Brussels yesterday in hope of moving onto trade negotiations, a delegation from NFU Scotland was in Westminster to meet the UK’S environment secretary, Michael Gove and farm minister, George Eustice. Vice president, Martin Kennedy, said that the group highlighted to ministers the need to allow devolved governments to introduce policies targeted to their own specific requirements and challenges.