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.
A set of announcements, largely for England, has been issued in conjunction with the second No 10 Farm to Fork Summit hosted by the Prime Minister on 14th May. This note provides an overview.
The RPA has introduced a set of temporary adjustments for those who have had difficulty meeting the requirements of their CS, ES, SFI and SFI pilot agreements due to wet weather. The full list of options and actions with temporary adjustments is available here: Wet weather: temporary support for farmers in 2024 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk). This note provides a short overview....
Many will be aware that there are significant delays in the creation and submission of annual claims for Countryside Stewardship. The RPA is encouraging agreement holders to continue to with their claims. They have advised us that: 'We will make sure that those affected are not disadvantaged. We will keep a record that the system performance has affected their ability to claim and they won’t receive any late claim reductions if we receive their claim after 15 May because of this.' Those...
The recently appointed Welsh Government Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change and Rural Affairs, Huw Irranca-Davies, today told the Senedd that, after seeing a draft of the analysis of over 1,200 consultation responses “it is already clear that some changes are needed” to the Sustainable Farming Scheme (SFS) proposals. That analysis and the government response to the consultation are to be published in June. This note provides more detail....
This article by Jeremy Moody first appeared in the CAAV e-Briefing of 9th May 2024 Land drainage and the management of water offer one of the ways to tell the story of our landscapes as millennia of hard work have made a wet land productive. Even now, for many soils having good field drainage is the precondition for land to give its potential – becoming more important with the spread of no-till practices. With 40 years since the last major wave of drainage investment, this winter has shown...
HMRC has now issued the Revenue and Customs Brief – VAT Treatment of Voluntary Carbon Credits with guidance to take effect from 1st September 2024, applying to transactions involving voluntary carbon credits on or after that date. This note provides more detail....
Those preparing to submit a claim for CS or ES in 2024 are reminded that the land use codes for the relevant parcels should be updated where there have been changes.
Following the announcement last week of two schemes to specifically support investment in on farm infrastructure (see our note), this note sets out more detail of the two slurry schemes being offered by Welsh Government.
Updated to V.6.1 on 7th May 2024 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 in...
This note sets out unit fertiliser values for Spring 2024 for use in connection with end of tenancy valuations.
Ahead of a statement due on 14th May, the new Welsh Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change and Rural Affairs, Huw Irranca Davies, has made a written statement to the Senedd on the next steps for the proposed Sustainable Farming Scheme (SFS), this note provides a summary.
The Climate Change Act 2008 requires the Government to prepare a 'carbon budget delivery plan' setting out how the targets for reducing emissions will be met. The latest version, approved by the Minister in 2023, had been subject to a legal challenge by a collection of eNGOs and climate advocacy groups. On Friday 3rd May, the High Court ruled that the plan did not meet the requirements of the Act, and the Government must therefore revisit the document. We wait to see if the Government will...
This article by Jeremy Moody first appeared in the CAAV e-Briefing of 2nd May 2024 The Agriculture Act 2020 gave powers for measures to promote “fair dealing obligations for business purchasers of agricultural products”. Three and half years later, the first fruits of that process are now coming through with the Fair Dealing (Milk) Obligations Regulations due to take effect from early July. These set standards that milk purchase contracts are to meet with both specific opportunities for...
Recognising the prolonged period of wet weather, an Extreme Weather Summit meeting was held resulting in Welsh Government highlighting the importance of investing in resilience. In response to concerns over slurry storage capacity the Welsh Government has announced there will be two schemes which specifically support investment in on farm infrastructure, these are: the Nutrient Management Investment Scheme andthe Small Grants – Yard Coverings scheme. Both schemes are to open shortly and £20m...
As part of a general policy on awarding public sector grants, the Scottish Government has advised that, with effect from 1st April, it has introduced “Fair Work” conditionality as an extra condition for some new grants. This note provides more detail.
The new The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development etc.) (England) (Amendment) Order 2024 (SI No. 579) make changes to Class Q, R, A and B permitted development rights, with effect from 21st May 2024. These changes are summarised in this webnote which includes a full text of the new Class Q. However, these changes also act in ways that mean that some aspects of Classes Q, A and B would be at least notionally narrowed. Where this applies, transitional provisions on the Order...
Following CAAV representations, the RPA has now postposed the planned downtime for the system from 13th May to 16th May. That planned for the evening of 15th May still appears to be going ahead.
Agricultural permitted development rights (including Classes Q and R) in England have now been enlarged following last year’s major consultation paper. The legislation has just been issued as The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development etc.) (England) (Amendment) Order 2024 (SI No. 579) and takes effect from 21st May. This note provides more detail....
The Government has now introduced the Fair Dealing Obligations (Milk) Regulations 2024 (SI 537) using its powers under the Agriculture Act 2020 to govern purchase contracts for agricultural produce. This note looks at the provisions of the Regulations.