NFU Cymru welcomes backing for option 1B

NFU Cymru has welcomed the Rural Development Sub Committee’s endorsement for option 1b in the consultation on the future structure of support for environmentally sustainable land management in Wales. Both the Union and the Committee agree that the best way forward would be to amend the existing LFA (Less Favoured Area) Scheme by adding voluntary environmental enhancements chosen from a menu of options.

The National Assembly’s Rural Development Sub Committee announced earlier this week the outcome of its inquiry into a review of Axis 2 of the Wales Rural Development Plan 2007-2013. The Sub Committee agreed with NFU Cymru’s view that option 1b was the best way forward in the immediate term. However, it didn’t go on so far as to agree with the Union that if this option was to be pursued by the Rural Affairs Minister, Elin Jones, it would be essential that it be accompanied by measures for lowland farmers to have access to agri-environment measures to recover modulated funds.

Dai Davies, NFU Cymru President, said, "We gave both oral and written evidence to the Rural Development Sub Committee on this issue and we are pleased that they have come to a similar conclusion to ourselves. We also welcome their comment that any major change to existing arrangements would cause severe disruption to the agricultural industry, particularly in the uplands and that there should be a significant lead-in time to any changes."

Mr Davies continued, "We also welcome the Sub Committee’s recommendation to the Rural Affairs Minister that she establishes a regular dialogue with stakeholders such as ourselves to ensure that there is agreement and buy-in to the review process."

When looking towards the future, NFU Cymru, in it’s response to the consultation said that it recognised that the chosen option of 1b was likely to only be valid for the remainder of the current Rural Development Plan period (until 2013). Therefore the Union recommended that the Assembly Government considers drawing up a pilot scheme (under option 2 of the review) with a view to evaluating how successor scheme(s) might be developed during the intervening period.

Again, NFU Cymru is pleased that the Rural Development Sub Committee in its inquiry conclusion has recommended that the option 2 model be implemented from 2013.

Mr Davies said, "We are pleased that the Sub Committee has recommended to the Welsh Assembly Government that it develops appropriate transitional arrangements covering a timescale that will enable the industry to adjust to the changes emerging from the review and to embed the cultural change that will be required within the industry."

Dai Davies, in conclusion said, "When considering successor arrangements for the current Axis 2 measures, NFU Cymru considers it essential that the farming industry in Wales should be sustainable in the broadest terms ie economically, environmentally, socially and culturally and the driver for all this will be determined by profitability. NFU Cymru has stated that any successor measures must maximise the level of resources that reach the individual farm business. Farmers need to be able to recover modulated SFP funds, particularly as the level of modulation rises and there must be no significant redistribution of resources under the Axis 2 measures which may have the potential to undermine business viability and result in the loss of more farming businesses."