The Welsh Assembly has announced that 84% of Welsh farmers will
begin receiving their single farm payment on 1 December 2009.
Welsh Assembly rural affairs minister Elin Jones told visitors
to the Royal Welsh Winter Fair in Builth Wells that the move was a
"wonderful achievement for Rural Payments Wales".
She told farmers, advisers and industry representatives that
civil servants should be praised for getting payments out so
quickly.
"Civil servants rarely come in for praise but in this case the
Rural Payment Wales should be congratulated," she said.
There was no information on how quickly the remaining 16% of
producers would be paid.
But the impact on early SFP monies being received would be felt
far beyond the farmgate, said the minister.
More than £200m was being paid into the rural community and
should not be seen as being paid simply to farmers, but money which
filters its way out from farm recipients and benefits the wider
community, she added.
Like producers in England and Scotland, SFP receipts have been
bolstered by recent exchange rate movements that have added 11% to
payments for farmers.
