Scottish Government and Defra to address farmers at St Andrews
Delayed payments, poor prices and political decisions will drive the agenda at NFU Scotland’s AGM when it meets in St Andrews next week (Thursday 11 February and Friday 12 February).
Scottish Government’s ongoing failure to deliver support payments to the majority of Scottish farmers, coupled with poor commodity prices and the wettest winter on record has made for a bleak start to 2016 for Scotland’s farmers and crofters.
Over the two days, members will hear from both Scottish Cabinet Secretary Richard Lochhead and Defra Minister George Eustice. The industry is desperate for clarity on when overdue support payments will be forthcoming and, in terms of the total pot of funding available to Scotland, it wants to know when the promised Westminster review of the convergence dividend from Europe will take place.
Key policy debates will also look at the impact of the proposed Land Reform Bill, currently passing through the Scottish Parliament, and whether the recommendations of Scottish Government’s own Agricultural Holdings Review Group on how to bolster the tenanted sector are being properly recognised.
On the marketplace, where commodity prices for virtually every sector are at a low ebb, debates will look at the potential offered by home and export markets and what can be done to ensure farmers receive a fairer margin. The AGM will also examine whether direct contracts with supermarkets are good or bad for the industry.
Great steps have also been taken in the past year to ensure the blight of rural crime in the countryside is taken more seriously and tackled in a more co-ordinated manner and the AGM will hear from Scotland’s Partnership Against Rural Crime.
Looking forward to the event, NFU Scotland President Allan Bowie said: “While longer term there remains much to be positive about for Scottish food and farming, the short term pressures on farm businesses from poor prices, payment worries and bad weather are relentless.
“That means finding a way to ride out the year ahead will drive decision-making at farm level. It is essential that, whatever decisions farmers are forced to make, we retain our capacity to produce food.
“The farming community and the supply trade will be desperate to hear from Richard Lochhead and his plans to address the fact that two-thirds of Scottish farmers and crofters are yet to receive a single penny of their support payment. That ongoing delay has generated a cash flow crisis on Scottish farms that is building by the day and causing genuine hardship in some cases.
“And we now need to be given a clear steer on what impact the current delays in delivering direct support will have on other support and grant schemes such as Less Favoured Areas payments, headage schemes and Young Farmer/New Entrant grants. Applications to the 2016 scheme year should open shortly – what reassurances can Mr Lochhead give that this year’s debacle will not be repeated?
“In terms of the total pot of public funding available to the Scottish industry, it has been an unerring goal of this Union goal to secure real movement on how Westminster chose to allocate the UK’s €230 million convergence dividend from the European Union (EU). We believe they got it wrong and that needs to be addressed.
“Scotland has the third lowest payment rate per hectare in the EU. The reason why the UK received this dividend was due to Scotland’s below average area payment rates. However, the UK Government chose to share this across the whole of the UK on the basis of historic allocations. A review has been promised and we would want to hear from Mr Eustice on what progress is being made.
“Whilst it is unlikely that a fully converged UK area-based payment would have meant all the UK dividend would have been allocated to Scotland, it is certain that Scotland should have received considerably more than its historic allocation.
“While public support remains a crucial element of farm incomes, the desire remains to secure more from the marketplace for our produce. This AGM will also hear about the opportunities that exist for our food and drink sectors, while also looking at the relationship farmers can have with our biggest customer – the UK retailers.
“And the Union’s AGM never shirks from looking at the big issues affecting our sector. Scotland’s landmark Land Reform Bill is passing through the Scottish Parliament right now and has proposals that could impact on every farm business – big or small, land owner or tenant.
“We are on record as being committed to securing a more vibrant let land market in Scotland. We were very engaged with the group established by Scottish Government to look at Agricultural Holdings and we are keen to hear if that group believes its recommendations are being adopted in the legislation coming forward from Scottish Government.”
Notes to Editors
An outline programme is below but if media would like to attend, please contact Bob Carruth on 0131 472 4006 or email: media@nfus.org.uk for further details. NFU Scotland will be issuing news releases and have a selection of photographs available for use during the event.
Outline Programme
Thursday 11 February 2016
11:00 – 12:15 AGM – this opens with a report by NFU Scotland Chief Executive Scott Walker and President Allan Bowie’s ‘State of the Union’ address. Lunch follows.
13:30 – 14:45 The UK and Export markets – Are there opportunities to deliver a better margin for Scottish farmers? The AGM will hear from Lorraine Bruce-Helmky, a market specialist based in Toronto and James Withers, Chief Executive of Scotland Food & Drink.
14:45 – 16:00 Scotland’s Land Reform Bill is in transit through Scottish Parliament with agricultural tenancies a key strand of proposed legislation – but is it fit for purpose? This Panel discussion is with members of Scottish Government’s Agricultural Holdings Review Group - Sir Crispin Agnew, Hamish Lean, Andrew Thin and Ian Mackay – reflecting on how the recommendations in its report are being incorporated into the Bill.
16:00 – 16:30 Delegates will hear from George Eustice MP, Minister of State at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
19:15 – 22:00 The Union’s annual dinner. Details on the fantastic menu for the evening can be found at: http://www.nfus.org.uk/news/2016/january/fine-scottish-produce-forms-stunning-one-annual-dinner-menu
Friday 12 February 2016
09:00 – 10:00 Aligned contracts, a good or bad thing. With many retailers having aligned contracts in place for milk, and pilot contracts being introduced for lamb, we ask what would a good contract look like? A debate involving Andrew Wright of the Institute of Auctioneers, and farmers Ben Jack, Scott Henderson, Graeme Kilpatrick and Charlie Adam
10:00 – 10:10 Scottish Partnership Against Rural Crime – A partnership in Scotland involving NFU Scotland, NFU Mutual, Police Scotland and others is looking to tackle the rising threat of crime in the countryside. Presentation on the work of SPARC by Chief Superintendent Gavin Robertson
10:30 – 11:30 Annual address to NFU Scotland members by Scottish Government Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs, Richard Lochhead MSP
Ends
Contact Bob Carruth on 0131 472 4006