91 percent of BPS claims in England have been paid in December, the Rural Payments Agency (RPA) confirms.
More than 76,500 (91%) of farmers in England received their 2017 Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) money by the end of December.
In November, the NFU said the RPA must pay over 90% of BPS claims by the end of December as uncertainty began to surface over the agency's effectiveness of getting payments out on time.
The RPA has also been urged by the farming union to provide certainty for over 8,000 farmers who are still waiting for their BPS claims in the form of bridging payments. 9% of farmers are still left waiting for payment.
RPA Chief Executive Paul Caldwell said: "We understand how important BPS payments are to farmers and their businesses.
"That’s why RPA staff have worked really hard to get money into bank accounts in the first month of the payment window, injecting just over £1.45 billion into the farming and wider rural economy. I’m very grateful to them for all their work so far.
"We know there are still farmers waiting for payments and will make them as soon as we can. This month we will communicate directly with those farmers who are still to be paid to help them plan."
NFU Vice President Guy Smith commented: “We have not forgotten that thousands of farmers are still waiting and this causes real problems with cash flow when running a farm business. The vast majority of those still waiting are doing so through no fault of their own. It is the RPA’s process that is causing the delay.
“Accordingly, we are calling for bridging payments as soon as possible for those unpaid. Defra should at the very least match for English farmers what has been done in Scotland and Wales when it comes to bridging payments.”
