SCOTTISH GOVERNMENT CONFIRM CASH SUPPORT FOR CAP STRAPPED FARMERS

Farmers and crofters still waiting for a direct subsidy payment at the end of March will receive a cash advance from the Scottish Government.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has confirmed the Scottish Government will use up to £200 million of national funds to provide cash support while Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) claims are being processed.

Speaking ahead of a meeting with NFU Scotland, the First Minister said:

“The transition to a new, more complex CAP that is affecting payment schedules right across Europe is happening as farmers and crofters are dealing with poor market prices and challenging weather conditions.

“We are less than half way through the payment window allowed by Europe, and the majority of Scottish producers – more than 10,000 – have already received a subsidy payment. However, payments are not being made as quickly as we would like.

“I very much recognise the cash flow issues facing Scottish agriculture, which underpins our £14 billion food and drink industry. That is why the Scottish Government has earmarked up to £200 million of national funds so that any farmer or crofter who has not received an instalment by the end of March receive a nationally-funded payment from the Scottish Government in April.”

Rural Affairs Secretary Richard Lochhead has confirmed that today’s announcement will also enable Scottish Beef Scheme payments to be made in the middle of April, in line with previous years.

It comes just days after the Cabinet Secretary announced national funds will also be used to ensure hill farmers and crofters in Scotland’s most fragile and remote rural areas who rely on Less Favoured Area Support Scheme (LFASS) funding will receive a payment in March as usual.

Mr Lochhead added:

“In Scotland, we are implementing decisions taken with the industry to tailor the policy to deliver better outcomes for Scottish agriculture. I have always been clear that adding this extra complexity would prove extremely challenging to implement, but it is taking longer to make payments than we had hoped.

“Europe’s deadline for making direct payments is June 30, and the majority of Scottish farmers and crofters have now received a first instalment worth about 80 per cent of their basic and greening claim.

“We are continuing efforts to speed up progress, such as taking on extra staff, but given the current difficulties facing Scottish agriculture the Scottish Government will use national funds to ensure farmers and crofters will receive support, totalling hundreds of millions of pounds, in the coming weeks.”

Speaking after meeting Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon in the Scottish Parliament this evening, NFU Scotland President Allan Bowie said: “The log jam has broken. For months, NFU Scotland has been looking for focussed thinking and clear leadership from Scottish Government to resolve this farm payments crisis for the benefit of the whole rural economy.

“We welcome the First Minister’s involvement and intervention and finally we have clear timelines drawn when all basic payment scheme claimants will receive the majority of their claims; when hill farmers and crofters will receive the majority of their Less Favoured Areas scheme money and beef payments have been promised in mid-April.

“That meets many of the demands that NFU Scotland has raised with Scottish Government as a direct result of the cash flow crisis that has emerged in recent months. I praise the efforts of all those farmers, crofters and trade representatives who have taken time to brief politicians in the past few weeks.

“The flawed IT system to deliver CAP payments, funded by £180 million of taxpayers’ money, desperately needs to be addressed and investigated and that must happen in due course. Not least, because the 2016 scheme is expected to open for electronic applications in a few days’ time.

“Right now, let’s focus on getting this vital money into circulation, fill the £300 million hole that has been created in Scotland’s rural economy and let’s get Scotland’s farmers and crofters back to the job of producing food and doing business again with all those trades that rely on a thriving agricultural sector.”