Brexit’s big chance for farmers to help world of nature
But focus could change five years after Brexit
BREXIT IS a “once-in-a-generation” chance to help farmers restore wildlife, improve soils and tackle climate change, a newly formed group of farmers said.
As Environment Secretary Michael Gove set out more details on his vision for a “Green Brexit”, the Nature Friendly Farming Network vowed to give a political voice to landowners who are committed to managing the countryside to support wildlife.
The group of more than 100 farmers said post-Brexit agricultural policy should help all farmers produce safe, healthy food while helping soils, landscapes, rivers and wildlife recover and flourish, and that farm payments should be redirected to make this approach mainstream across the UK.
Yorkshire Dales farmer Neil Heseltine, who farms in Malham, was involved in the network’s launch steering group.
Arable farmer and group chairman Martin Lines said: “Brexit presents a once-in-a-generation opportunity to create a new farming policy that will help farms evolve and thrive, at the same time as restoring and protecting our natural heritage.”
Marian Spain, chief executive of wildlife charity Plantlife, backed the creation of the network, saying: “All too often, farmers and conservationists are pitched against each other, apparently irreconcilable adversaries.
This ‘farming versus environment’ narrative is holding wildlife-friendly back at a critical moment.”
FARMING SUBSIDIES could continue for a five-year transitional period after Britain formally leaves the European Union next year, Environment Secretary Michael Gove has announced.
But after 2024, farmers will be paid on the basis of “public money for public goods”, he said, as the current EU system of paying landowners for the amount of agricultural land they have is “unjust, inefficient and drives perverse outcomes”.
Speaking at the Oxford Farming Conference, Mr Gove, inset, said the existing farm support system through the Common Agricultural Policy gives the most from the public purse to those who have the most private wealth, bids up land prices, rewards farmers for inefficient methods of production and fails to incentivise truly ecologically healthy landscapes. “We can, and must, do better,” he said, before going on to explain that he wants to introduce changes in a way which would avoid farmers facing a “cliff-edge” and which builds thoughts about “natural capital” – the value nature provides to society – into a sustainable approach for the future of the countryside. Mr Gove promised a Command Paper will be published this spring to give more details about the Government’s plans. He said: “Building on previous countryside stewardship and agri-environment schemes, we will design a scheme accessible to almost any landowner or manager who wishes to enhance the natural environment by planting woodland, providing new habitats for wildlife, increasing biodiversity, contributing to improved water quality and returning cultivated land to wildflower meadows or other more natural states.”
The Government has already guaranteed to match the annual £3bn subsidies paid to farmers until 2022 and Mr Gove elaborated further at yesterday’s conference, saying: “I then envisage guaranteeing that BPS payments (direct Basic Payment Scheme subsidies) continue for a transition period in England, which should last a number of years beyond the implementation period, depending on consultation.”
He added: “During these years, we propose to first reduce the largest BPS payments in England. We could do this through a straight cap at a maximum level or through a sliding scale of reductions, to the largest payments first.
“This should provide every existing farmer who receives a BPS payment with a guaranteed income over this extended transition period.
“That guaranteed income should provide time for farmers to change their business model if necessary, help to make the investment necessary for any adjustments and prepare for the future.
“And, after that transition, we will replace BPS with a system of public money for public goods.”
The president of the National Farmers’ Union Meurig Raymond said Mr Gove’s speech was a “positive signal for the farming industry” and that with adequate time to prepare, the introduction of a new policy framework for farming could be delivered successfully.
Christopher Price, director of policy at the Country Land and Business Association, said he was pleased that Mr Gove had proposed to extend the period of operation of the existing basic payment scheme to ensure a full and smooth transition.