England
Defra announced details of the ELM scheme support mechanism for farmers and landowners in England. It consists of three environmental land management schemes:
Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) – focuses on making agricultural activities more sustainable. To be launched in Spring 2022, SFI will include actions such as reducing inorganic fertiliser and pesticide use, better soil care and improving farmland biodiversity, water quality, air quality and carbon sequestration. Defra’s target is for at least 70% of farmers, covering at least 70% of farmland, to take up Sustainable Farming Incentive agreements.
Local Nature Recovery – this is in effect a successor to the Countryside Stewardship Scheme. This fund is intended to make space for nature within the farmed landscape and support nature recovery schemes such as tree planting, peatland restoration, natural habitat creation/restoration and natural flood management.
Landscape Recovery – which will support larger landowners or land managers wishing to make long-term and large-scale changes to land use (e.g. woodland planting, extensive peatland restoration) leading to significant environmental and climate outcomes. Defra plans to deliver at least 10 Landscape Recovery projects covering over 20,000 ha by 2024.
By the end of the proposed agricultural transition in 2028, Defra expects the government’s £2.4bn annual farm funding pot provided for farmers in England will be split equally among these three schemes, with some money also being invested to improve farm productivity.
Wales
Following Brexit, the Welsh government had planned to end direct payments and begin phasing in a new funding regime from 2021. However, in September 2021, it was announced that their ‘Sustainable Farming Scheme’ would not open until January 2025. A new agriculture bill (setting out a more detailed policy framework) is planned for summer 2022, with a final consultation on the new scheme and transitional measures expected in spring 2023.
The current Basic Payment Scheme and the sustainable land management payments will continue until 2023. The Sustainable Farming Scheme is expected to encourage Welsh farmers and land managers to farm in a way that promotes a range of environmental benefits, including carbon storage, soil improvement and water quality. Payments will be based on the principle of ‘public money for public goods’.
Scotland
Scotland has a much higher proportion of less favoured area land (LFA) than the rest of the UK and as such, the Scottish government has the challenge of striking a balance between providing support for hill and croft farmers, maintaining a high quality of food production, protecting the environment, and targeting net zero carbon.
Farmers in Scotland will continue to receive subsidy payment under the Basic Payment Scheme – a support policy effectively inherited from the previous Common Agricultural Policy – until 2024, after which it will present new proposals for its future subsidy framework.
Northern Ireland
Farm subsidies form part of the Northern Ireland Protocol. Payments to farmers are roughly equivalent to previous CAP payment levels. Northern Ireland’s Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs is responsible for the administration of farm subsidy payments until 2022. From then, the Northern Ireland assembly will legislate for and develop a future agriculture policy framework.