Scottish Suckler Beef Support Scheme (SSBSS) 2024 Now Open
Scottish Government has made an announcement on the Scottish Suckler Beef Support Scheme (SSBSS) 2024, the application window is now open, and will close on Tuesday 31st December 2024.
This What's New section is a quick one-stop shop to show you the most recent additions to the Members Area (log-in required) and News items.
Scottish Government has made an announcement on the Scottish Suckler Beef Support Scheme (SSBSS) 2024, the application window is now open, and will close on Tuesday 31st December 2024.
Defra has reviewed and updated Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) payment rates based on current costs. Where the 2024 rate has increased, the higher payment rate will be paid for: existing SFI Pilot and 2023 agreements, backdated to the start of their current agreement year.new applications received in 2024 SFI 22 payment rates are not changing as the scheme is closing....
The Scottish Government has launched a consultation with a view to updating the legislation on the management of wild deer. The consultation follows the report of the Deer Working Group in 2020. The proposed legislative changes seek to improve deer management taking into consideration climate change and biodiversity. Changes to legislation that were made in 2023 include to remove the close season for all male deer, to enable the wider use of non-toxic ammunition and to facilitate night...
Robbie Moore, Floods Minister, has made a statement in the Commons on the renewed flooding in England following Storm Henk, noting that: “Parts of the country had a month’s worth of rain in the first four days of January, and that rain fell on already saturated ground. Several of our biggest river systems—the Trent, Thames, Severn and Avon—saw record levels, or close to record levels …” He stressed the protection given by recent flood defence works and the 2022 planning guidance...
The Government has announced financial support for farmers, businesses and households in those areas of England that have experienced exceptional localised flooding form Storm Henk (2nd to 8th January). This note sets out the support available.
As a striking achievement, the United Kingdom is now about halfway to its net zero target for 2050, the first G7 country to do so. With the lags in producing statistics, the headline territorial measure for UK-produced greenhouse gas emissions in 2022 has now been reported at 51 per cent of their level in 1990, lower than before the pandemic and expected to have fallen further in 2023. With much of this achieved by increased renewable energy reducing the share of fossil fuel in electricity...
Following an earlier note, this update provides more detail on the Secretary of State’s speech to the Oxford Farming Conference. Accompanied by the publication of the Agricultural Transition Plan Update and three years after the original Plan was issued, this sets out a substantial expansion of SFI and other measures phased in over 2024....
Andrew Liddiment of near Leominster, Herefordshire referred himself to the CAAV’s disciplinary processes following a criminal conviction for sexual assault. The CAAV Executive, sitting as a Disciplinary Panel, reviewed all papers submitted and, as authorised for such a case under the Bylaws, determined that the seriousness of the matter for the reputation of a Fellow and of the Association warranted his expulsion from membership of the Association with immediate effect from 19th...
Now three years into the Agricultural Transition and with payments delinked, the speech to the Oxford Farming Conference (see press release) by the new Secretary of State, Steve Barclay, was accompanied by the Agricultural Plan Transition Update, continuing to aim for a 70 per cent take of environmental land management agreements by farmers, while making other announcements is support of farming productivity. This note summarises the speech and is supported by the attached DEFRA papers....
The end of year closure of the SFI Application Portal meant that all applications that had been started but not submitted by then are treated as withdrawn. The Application Portal has now re-opened. We understand that a number of applications have already been started using re-opened Portal and a small number of applications have now been submitted. This is seen to suggest that the system is again functional.
The Basic Payment Scheme has now fully ended in England, taking cross compliance with it. This note sets out the updated guidance from DEFRA.
The CAAV office will close for Christmas at 1 p.m. on Friday 22nd December 2023 and re-open on Tuesday 2nd January 2024. May we take this opportunity to wish you all a Happy Christmas and best wishes for the New Year.
Updated to V.54.0 on 22nd December 2023 The RPA has prepared a Sustainable Farming Incentive Q&A document, addressing some common questions about both the general nature of the scheme and some action-specific issues. The RPA's intention is to provide a common understanding of the purpose and requirements of aspects of the scheme. This is to be a 'living document'; it will change as new questions and issues arise and so should not be taken as a fixed and definitive guide. It should also be read...
This article by Jeremy Moody first appeared in the CAAV e-Briefing of 21st December 2023 With the winter solstice in the dark of early tomorrow morning, the year turns to bring 2023 to an end and open 2024 and all it might offer. The great feasts of lights, Jewish Hannukah followed by Christmas, shine out in the mid-winter, lights against the dark. From this autumn’s grey and rain sodden farmland of Britain to the grim war-fronts of south and east Ukraine, this matters for the hope and...
The Welsh Government has confirmed that the vast majority of Cross Compliance for 2023 will continue to apply for 2024, with some amendments to Factsheets and associated sections of the Verifiable Standards which have been updated for 2024 to reflect changes in requirements, good practice and to clarify wording. See the Welsh Government website for more detail.
As Members will be aware, BPS ends on 31st December 2023, succeeded by delinked payments managing the run-off funds of the scheme. For more background to the scheme, see our recent Podcast). Over the past month, farm businesses have received an Information Statement, setting out the basis on which their delinked payments would be calculated. A business’ reference data – the gross payment received across 2020, 2021 and 2022 – will be able to be transferred to another party in early 2024....
The December 2023 edition of the CAAV News Letter is attached
The Welsh Government has presented its Budget for the coming year. This note has the detail.
The Government has proposed that nitrogen fertiliser be included in a UK Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism. This note has more detail.
Attached is the 2023 version of the CAAV BPS Payment Estimator to assist members with checking 2023 BPS payments in England. The CAAV can accept no liability for its use.
The CAAV is to co-host with the Portuguese valuers association, ASAVAL, a conference on agricultural valuation issues across Europe. More detail, and booking information, is available in this note.
The Scottish Government has presented its Budget for the coming year. This note has the detail.
The Government has made a number of announcements on nutrient neutrality measures for England. This note provides more detail.
The latest edition of England’s National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) was published on Tuesday 19th December. This note contains more detail.
The Welsh Government has now issued its final consultation paper setting out how it intends to move from the legacy Basic Payment Scheme to the new Sustainable Farming Scheme (SFS), starting in 2025. This note has more detail.
The Environment Act 2021 gives powers at s.116 and Schedule 17 for schemes to insist that the UK supply chain does not use produce from land that has been illegally deforested. As part of its work at COP28, the Government has now announced that the initial list of excluded products will include beef and leather. This note looks at some of the implications of the ban....
The international COP28 meeting in Dubai on issues of climate change concluded earlier this week. This note looks at the headlines of the agreed declarations.
This article by Jeremy Moody first appeared in the CAAV e-Briefing of 14th December 2023 Forget England’s Agricultural Transition and the coming end of Basic Payment in the other parts of the United Kingdom. While those dominate conversation and thinking, the most striking policy change for much rural land across the UK goes far beyond where the environmental parts of the new policies might seem to go. The international “30by30” commitment means that 30 per cent of land and 30 per cent of...
From 11th December, the previous £250,000 cap on Variable Monetary Penalties has been lifted, enabling the Environment Agency to raise unlimited financial penalties against polluters. This note has more detail.
Ahead of its launch on 15th January, DEFRA and Innovate UK have published the guidance for the next round of the Large R&D Partnerships competition. This note has more detail.
DEFRA has opened a Small Abattoir Fund. This note has a very brief overview.
DEFRA has published the detail of Round 2 of the Improving Farm Productivity Grant. This note gives an overview.
A recent decision of the High Court – NRS Saredon Aggregates v SSLUHC & another [2023] EWHC 2795 (Admin) – provides some useful context on the place of Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) in planning decisions. This note has a summary.
The Forestry Commission has updated the grant manual for the England Woodland Creation Offer, providing more detail for when applicants can move land from Countryside Stewardship into the EWCO scheme. See section 3.3.2 here: England Woodland Creation Offer application form - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
Natural England and the Forestry Commission have jointly published the policy document Our Position on Woodland Creation. This note reproduces some passages from the document.
DEFRA has published more detail on the approach to delivering the 30 by 30 target in England. This note reviews the publication.
At the end of December, the RPA will be closing the SFI application portal, to allow for annual updates to be undertaken. Any unsubmitted SFI applications will need to be restarted when the system re-opens in January. The key points are: SFI 2023 applications should be submitted by 31 December In order for applicants to apply in 2024, RPA will close the service for new applications for a few days, between 27 December and 1 January Customers with an SFI application they have started but...
This article by Jeremy Moody first appeared in the CAAV e-Briefing of 7th December 2023 The area-based Basic Payment Scheme ends this month for England. The RPA has just made the overwhelming majority of the second balancing payments for 2023, so that English farmers have now had almost two thirds of the direct payments possible under the Agricultural Transition. The statutory instrument revoking the Scheme and ending cross compliance has been published together with another one setting 60 day...
The results of the CAAV’s 2023 Written, Practical and Oral professional examinations for Fellowship are being issued this morning to candidates. The note below provides further information, including an Appendix summarising overall statistics.
The Welsh Government Small Grants Scheme for Yard Coverings (Round 2) closes on 15th December 2023. This note sets out the grant funding, with an annex covering the types of works covered, providing up to 40% funding between £3,000-£12,000.
DEFRA has now published the final version of the BNG metric for use in January, along with accompanying guidance: Calculate biodiversity using the biodiversity metric - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk). This note provides more information.
This note sets out the changes to Welsh Water Regulations (see website notes on this topic, including amendments in Member Documents/Wales/Water and Flooding/Nitrate Vulnerable Zones) made under The Water Resources (Control of Agricultural Pollution) (Wales) (Amendment) (No. 3) Regulations 2023, including: extension of the annual limit on land with more than 80% of agricultural area sown as grass to 1st January 2025 and;the introduction of the Enhanced Nutrient Management Plan, as announced in...
This note takes a brief look at the end of cross compliance in England, a signposts readers to the latest Government guidance.
The Leasehold and Freehold Reform Bill follows last year’s Leasehold Reform (Ground Rent) Act which ended ground rents for new, qualifying long residential leasehold properties in England and Wales. This Bill proposes larger and longer-term changes for owners of houses and flats on existing long leases, appearing in practical terms to bring much of the ground rent system to an end. This note sets out the main provisions of the Bill....
Round 3 of the Natural Environment Investment Readiness Fund opens for applications on 11th December. This note has more detail.
Natural England has prepared and published two template documents in relation to habitat management and monitoring for BNG: Template Habitat Management and Monitoring PlanTemplate Monitoring Report There is accompanying guidance published online. This note provides a brief overview....
The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development etc.) (England) (Amendment) (No. 2) Order 2023 No. 1279 extends permitted development rights in England principally in respect of solar power generation facilities. It also makes minor changes to permitted development rights for telecoms masts and open prisons.
Steve Barclay, the new DEFRA Secretary of State, outlined a series of grants, totalling almost £45 million, to a CLA Conference. The details of these grants are to be announced over coming weeks. They are from within the £168 million total funding announced earlier this year by Mark Spencer at the NFU AGM.
On 29th November, the draft Biodiversity Gain Site Register Regulations 2024 were published on Gov.uk, providing the detail on the use and management of the register. These are reviewed here, and we will update members on any significant amendments. Updated 4th December: Information added on fees and penalties...
The COP28 international summit on climate change in Dubai has announced that 134 world leaders have agreed the COP28 UAE Declaration on Sustainable Agriculture, Resilient Food Systems, and Climate Action. This note provides and overview....
This note reviews the pricing and role of statutory credits for Biodiversity Net Gain in England.
This note looks at the definition and place of irreplaceable habitats within Biodiversity Net Gain.
This article by Jeremy Moody first appeared in the CAAV e-Briefing of 30th November 2023 While having more Fellows and Probationers than ever, the CAAV is conscious that rural practices feel an acute shortage of staff for the growing range and volume of work coming in. With work growing faster than we are, this feels more than the general shortage of staff in the wider economy. The CAAV has been tackling this with a round of meetings with some employers and the universities to see how we can...
Biodiversity Net Gain requirements for planning applications become mandatory, for most development, from January 2024. Small sites and infrastructure development have staggered implementation dates: April 2024 and November 2025 respectively. Some types of development, however, are exempt from the BNG requirements. This note provides an overview.
Plumpton College is launching a full BSc honours degree in Rural Land and Business Management and to be available from September 2024. This note provides more detail.
The Government has published a range of documents in preparation for the implementation of Biodiversity Net Gain in England in January 2024: Draft statutory instruments, amending existing legislation and making provision for the Biodiversity Gain Site Register, excepted sites and irreplaceable habitatsUpdate guidance for BNG, collected here: Biodiversity net gain - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)A revised Biodiversity MetricDraft planning practice guidance on BNG We will follow the announcements with a...
DEFRA has today (29th November) published a series of announcements relating to nature recovery. Drawing a connection to the upcoming COP28 Climate Conference, these relate to a range of ongoing programmes and schemes, as well as providing detail on forthcoming work. This note provides an overview of those announcements relevant for rural work.
The UK Government announced up to £15 million of support will be available to respond to flooding in areas of Northern Ireland in the absence of the Executive. The money has been made available through the granting of a request made to HM Treasury jointly by the UK Government’s Northern Ireland Office and Northern Ireland’s Department of Finance to reallocate funding from capital to resource budgets – recognising the need to be nimble and act swiftly at times of crisis for communities....
Richard Sanders, technical and policy adviser to the CAAV, offers a quick refresher and update on the delinking scheme. As many listeners will be aware, as part of the post-Brexit agricultural transition, England is moving to a farming support system of public money for public goods. Basic payment has been gradually declining, to be phased out by 2027. So what does the future hold? RPA Delinking Guidance: Delinked payments: replacing the Basic Payment Scheme - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) CAAV...
This article by Jeremy Moody first appeared in the CAAV e-Briefing of 23rd November 2023 The let sector covers a third of England’s farmland, still with many 1986 Act tenancies but more than half on FBTs, and still large areas of Wales and Scotland. In addition to that scale, it provides a critical means of flexibility in farm structures, entry, expansion and exit from farming, relieving owners of the need to farm and enabling farmers to have the use of land without having to buy it. Its...