NFU Scotland calls for CAP payment flexibility
NFU Scotland has called for payment flexibility to be built into new CAP schemes.
The plea comes as the Scottish government prepares to administer payments via the Less Favoured Area Support Scheme (LFASS) slightly later than normal this year.
The scheme, which delivers more than £60m of support to livestock hill and upland farmers, will be crucial this year following the 2012 weather pressures faced by producers, said NFUS.
However, the union fears any new support system to emerge as part of CAP reform could potentially delay payment runs in the future, and they are calling for a system where producers could receive an advance payment.
“For many Scottish farmers and crofters, lifeline LFASS support cannot come quickly enough as the 2012 weather has seen greater expenditure on feeding and bedding, poorer returns for lambs and seriously stretched cash flows,” said NFUS president Nigel Miller.
The union recognised that the Scottish government had clear objections to meet on completing inspection requirements before LFASS funds could be released, however there should be no delay to payments this year as there had been a weather window for inspections in the opening weeks of the year, said Mr Miller.
“If anything, slippage in timing of the LFASS payment run to later in March simply underlines our view that we need new arrangements for payment schemes that allow, if necessary, advance payments to be made,” he added.
Any new direct support scheme arrangements emerging from the CAP reform process could generate further delays in payments due to their complexity. As a result NFUS was calling for an advance payment system for the new CAP to ensure cashflow on Scottish farms in December of each scheme year, said Mr Miller.
“The current LFASS has been a real success, providing a lifeline to many of our most vulnerable producers over a turbulent few years,” he added.
“As there will be a hiatus between Scotland’s existing rural development plan and the next, the current LFASS scheme must roll over in its current form until farms have adjusted to the new SFP system and the next SRDP (Scottish Rural Development Programme) is in place.
“In the long term, a future LFA or Areas of Natural Constraint (ANC) support scheme must be the cornerstone of the next SRDP and must build on the principles of the existing LFASS.”
Responding to the union’s concerns, a Scottish government spokesperson said the payments were not being delivered any later than they were in 2012.
“We are working hard to secure a CAP reform deal that is fair, flexible and not unnecessarily bureaucratic because – as the NFUS have recognised – introducing complexity into future arrangements could result in delays to payments.”
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