The Rural Bulletin: 14 September 2017

Major share of subsidies to farmers, says Gove

Farmers should receive a major share of farm subsidies post-Brexit to support environmental work, said Defra secretary Michael Gove during a visit to Cornwall last week. While Mr Gove stated that the way farmers are allocated subsidies at the moment is wrong - and subsidies after Brexit will have to be earned – he has pledged to honour the commitment of £3bn to sustain and boost agricultural productivity.

Farm borrowings hit record levels

Borrowings by Scottish farmers have hit their highest levels since records began in 1972 – up £113m in the year to 31 May 2017 – taking total debt to £2.32bn. NFU Scotland has said this is bad news for Scottish agriculture – highlighting a lack of profitability in farming - and have called for the need to forge a new partnership between farming and the rest of the food and drink supply chain.

Similarly, the latest figures from the Bank of England also showed UK agriculture borrowings are higher than they have ever been – up £700m since the beginning of the year.

Landowners pull out of telecoms agreements

New communications legislation – scheduled to come into force early next year - has caused concern for farmers and landowners across the country, leading many to pull out of telecoms agreement. The new Electronic Communications Code gives operators wider powers and will affect all telecoms agreements – including BT wayleaves. The new code limits landowner’s rights and restricts the ability of a landowner to remove an operator, even if there is a breach of contract or the rent has been unpaid – leading to a growing reluctance to enter such agreements.

Culling licenses granted in Cheshire and Wiltshire

New four-year culling licenses granted this week by Natural England means badger culling will take place this autumn in Cheshire and Wiltshire – as part of the Government’s bid to tackle bovine TB.

In Wiltshire, culling will take place across three zones to remove a minimum of 5,376 and a maximum of 7,296 badgers and in Cheshire, a maximum of 764 badgers will be culled across one zone.

This will take total cull numbers across the county to a minimum of 21,981 this autumn – though the license permits as many as 33,841 badgers to be removed.

BPS loans of 90% for Scottish farmers

Scottish farmers will be offered 90% loans this autumn in lieu of their expected Basic Payment Scheme subsidy, announced rural affairs secretary, Fergus Ewing, this week.

As part of a new CAP stabilisation plan, farmers will be able to apply for loans later this month – with eligible applicants expected to receive 90% of BPS and greening support from November, and the remaining 10% anticipated to be delivered next spring. Failure of the Scottish government’s IT system has been blamed for subsidies not being delivered on time – making 2017 the third consecutive year that loan schemes have had to be used.