Glastir must be fit for purpose

NFU Cymru’s concerns about the new agri-environment scheme Glastir have been clearly confirmed and substantiated by interim results of the Union’s survey, which were presented to the Rural Affairs Minister today by President Ed Bailey.

Mr Bailey said, "The survey will run until the New Year but already it supports the concerns that NFU Cymru has repeatedly made about the impracticality of implementing this scheme at a farm level. I have urged the Minister to ensure that the independent review panel, which the Minister has agreed to establish, will be given the remit that will allow them to make recommendations to make Glastir fit for purpose."

Of the responses received to date to NFU Cymru’s Glastir survey 23.5% have applied to join the scheme and the main reason for the majority of these was to offset losses due to the impending closure of Tir Mynydd and agri environment schemes.

Of the 76.5% who have decided not to apply for the scheme, the top three reasons for not applying were, in order:

1. Insufficient financial incentive 69.2%*

2. Prescriptions are too restrictive 63.2%

3. I can’t score sufficient points 52%

Another question posed was whether farmers would consider applying for Glastir next year. Over 62% said they would consider applying next year if the conditions of the scheme were revised but less than 1% thought they would if the conditions remained the same.

Ed Bailey said, "The Minister should take comfort from the fact that over 62% of farmers will consider joining Glastir if the scheme conditions are amended. The ball is now firmly in the Minister’s court to ensure that the scheme is revisited with a view to capturing this level of interest.

"Those who have decided to enter Glastir, in the main, have done so to offset losses due to the impending closure of current schemes. Therefore the potential impact the failure to enter Glastir will have is greater for those farmers who have expressed an interest in joining the scheme but, for the reasons outlined in our survey, have felt unable to follow this through with an application."

Mr Bailey told the Minister, "The review panel will only be successful if it is constituted largely of practitioners and their views are respected and taken on board. The panel must be given free rein to revisit the detail within the current prescriptions, to consider additional prescriptions and to consider how to ensure that environmental work already carried out on farm is recognised within Glastir."

In the event that significant refinements to the scheme cannot be introduced in time to allow for a new application period for entry into Glastir from 2012, which seems likely, NFU Cymru believes that the Minister should revisit the transitional arrangements. Re-instatement of Tir Mynydd payments at the full rate for 2012 and the ability for farmers to be able to apply for the ACRES grant outside of the All Wales element of Glastir are two areas that the Union has today asked the Minister to consider.