The Scottish Rural Economy Secretary has today confirmed that over 17,700 claimants have received their BPS 2015 payment. Further information is available on the Scottish Government website.
A voluntary scheme has been launched today in England to help with the eradication of bovine viral disease (BVD). Farmers are being encouraged to sign up to the scheme. Further information can be found on the BVD Free website.
Boris Johnson has given a speech earlier today in which he ruled himself out of the Conservative Party leadership role. Nominations for candidates closed at noon today and the five candidates are:- Theresa May Stephen Crabb Liam Fox Michael Gove Andrea Leadsom The first vote from MPs is due to take place next Tuesday (5th July 2016) with the candidate with the fewest votes being eliminated. A further vote should then take place next Thursday (7th July 2016) and if more than two...
Oliver Robbins has been appointed as Permanent Secretary of the new EU Unit in the Cabinet Office. Further information is available on the GOV.UK website.
The 2016 CAAV AGM, held at the Alton Towers Resort Hotel in Staffordshire, saw the election of a new Presidential Team for 2016/17. The new President is Nick Millard from Somerset, who works with Michelmore Hughes and lectures at Reading University. The Senior Vice-President, James Dick, is based in Aberdeen, where his runs his own consultancy business. Geoff Coster, of the Valuation Office Agency in Shropshire, was elected as Junior Vice-President.
Labour has announced that the former Shadow Defra Minister, Kerry McCarthy, has resigned. She has been replaced by Rachael Maskell, MP for York Central, whose background is in health and the NHS.
The Welsh Government has confirmed that the first year of BPS 'online-only' applications has been a success with 16,252 applications received by 16th May 2016 deadline. Further information is available on the Welsh Government website.
The Scottish Rural Affairs Secretary, Richard Lochhead, has resigned from the Cabinet and First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has appointed Fergus Ewing as Cabinet Secretary for the Rural Economy and Connectivity and Roseanna Cunningham as Cabinet Secretary for the Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform. . A full list of the new Scottish Cabinet can be found on the Scottish Government website.
Carwyn Jones has been appointed as First Minister in Wales. Further details of the election results can be found on the National Assembly for Wales website.
The National Trust is looking for a farming tenant to take on a 10 year Farm Business Tenancy at Parc Farm, Great Orme in North Wales. The rent will be £1 per annum as the farm has to be managed with a specific focus on conservation. Further information about applying for the tenancy is available on the National Trust website. A shortlist will be drawn up during mid-June with interviews being held on 5th July 2016....
CAAV Secretary and Adviser Jeremy Moody met the EU Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, Phil Hogan, in Brussels yesterday and presented him with a copy of the CAAV text 'Tenancies, Conacre and Licences: Arrangements for Occupying Agricultural Land in Northern Ireland'. Jeremy had travelled to Brussels from Belfast where he had been meeting representatives of the accountancy profession to discuss the taxation implications for landowners of longer term tenancies for farms and land....
The RPA has confirmed that, as at 29th February 2016, more than 71,700 BPS 2015 claimants (over 82% of the total 87,095 claimants). The total amount paid by then was £1.13 billion out of the total estimated fund of £1.43 billion. Payments have started to be made to those with common land as well as some inspection cases. The RPA has again stated that: "Almost all" farmers due a payment should be paid by the end of March 2016, but that "a few thousand of the more complex cases" will take...
The Rural Payments service has been made available for farmers and agents to start online BPS 2016 applications. It is now possible to view and transfer land and entitlements, as well as check personal and business details and give permission for someone else to submit the BPS 2016 claim. It will not be possible to submit completed claims until around mid-March. Further details are available on the GOV.UK website....
The RPA has issued a further news release this afternoon confirming that "almost all" BPS 2015 claimants should have received a payment by the end of March 2016. As of today, 70,880 claimants had been paid £1.11 billion. The news release can be viewed on the GOV.UK website.
The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Elizabeth Truss, has delivered a speech at the National Farmers' Union (NFU) conference earlier today. Her speech is available on the GOV.UK website.
The Scottish Government has awarded £2 million to fund farming projects under the Rural Development Programme's Knowledge Transfer and Innovation Fund (KTIF). Grants have been awarded to: QMS and AHDB Cereals & Oilseeds for the establishment of 9 innovative Monitor Farms in Scotland SAC Commercial for a project looking at improbving lamb survival and farm profitability SAOS for a pilot of an innovative and interative farm-focused lean management approach AHDB Potatoes to develop a...
The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) is urging farmers to carefully monitor stock for any symptoms of Bluetongue. This follows an increased risk of the UK experiencing an outbreak this spring/summer as a result of midges being blown across from France where the disease is present. Further information is available on the GOV.UK website.
Scotland's Rural Affairs Secretary, Richard Lochhead, has announced the provision of a Farming Hardship scheme to assist farmers and crofters with accessing loans whilst awaiting their BPS 2015 payment. Whilst speaking at the National Farmers Union of Scotland annual conference last week, he confirmed that over 7,300 BPS 2015 claimants had been paid (out of a total of over 18,000 claims). Details of the Farming Hardship scheme are awaited. Please see the Rural Payments and Services website for...
The RPA has issued a further update about progress with making BPS 2015 payments. 68,572 (78.7%) farmers have now been paid a total of £1.043 billion (out of an estimated total fund of £1.43 billion). Further information is available on the GOV.UK website.
The RPA has issued another update on progress with making BPS 2015 payments. As at 31st January 2016, 66,800 claimants (77% of the total claimant population) have received a payment. The amount paid is just over £1 billion of the estimated total BPS fund of £1.43 billion. RPA Chief Executive, Mark Grimshaw, has said that the aim is "to have paid almost all eligible farmers by the end of March with a few thousand of the more complex cases taking slightly longer". Further details can be found on...