MSPS say flexibility is the key to agriculture policy

The effects of the Covid 19 pandemic have exposed significant vulnerabilities in the agri-food supply chain – and have accentuated the crucial importance which should be attached to setting future farm policy.

That was one of the central themes at yesterday’s debate on Scotland’s Agriculture Bill which will provide the legal mechanism to develop agricultural policy and to continue to make support payments.

Stage 1 of the Agriculture (Retained EU Law and Data) (Scotland) Bill which was debated at Holyrood was the first legislative step to allowing the Scottish Government to roll out its “Stability and Simplicity” approach which covers the period from 2021 to 2024.

Rural economy secretary Fergus Ewing said that the current unprecedented times also highlighted the need for powers to “adapt flexibly to changing circumstances”. Commenting on the call from several speakers for a “sunset clause” to be placed on the ability to change policy through secondary rather than primary legislation, he said that not only Covid-19 but other uncertainties such as the UK’S future trading relationship with Europe and the maintenance of production standards within these deals meant that while there was no intention to retain such powers indefinitely, it would detrimental to set deadline for the process at this time.

However, the chair of the rural economy committee, Edward Mountain MSP, said that while there was no desire to put the process in a straitjacket, there was a justified fear that without a time limit the current or subsequent governments could use the powers in perpetuity to reform agricultural policy without the sort of scrutiny which primary legislation entailed.

He also said that while he understood that it was not the purpose of the bill to address the longer term future of agricultural policy, by introducing a time limit there would be greater incentive to develop and introduce long-term policy.

● While the capping of farm support payments was likely to be an inevitable policy development, any funds freed up should be retained and “recycled” within the sector. That was the message given to MSP’S ahead of yesterday’s debate by NFU Scotland.

Stating that it was “not necessarily opposed” to the notion of capping in principle, the union said it felt that it was vital that any funds freed up remained within the agriculture portfolio.

In a briefing paper drawn up by the union it was also stressed that an arbitrary capping of payments above a single given threshold was an extremely blunt measure – which could be ineffective or punitive, with degressive reductions likely to be more effective than absolute ceilings..

However it was stressed that while care had to be taken in setting the cap, it was just as important that full consideration was given to how best any funds freed up were deployed in order to attain necessary and desired policy outcomes. “Therefore, NFUS believes it is vital that such powers are subject to consultation and would welcome an amendment to the bill at Stage 2 to ensure such measures are consulted upon before implementation.”