Defra eases penalties for 2022 cross-compliance breaches

Defra has promised more proportionate penalties will apply in 2022 for minor breaches of the cross-compliance rules governing cattle and sheep identification and registration.

Farmers have long complained that small breaches in the rules can lead to disproportionate financial penalties.

In updated guidance notes for 2022 the government has confirmed that the list of cross-compliance rules farmers in England must meet in order to be paid their Basic Payments Scheme (BPS) claim has not changed for the coming year.

See also: 5 most common cross-compliance breaches and how to avoid them

However, it is making changes to visits by field officers and the enforcement action it will take if farmers are found to be in breach of the rules.

For example, some very minor errors on cattle or sheep identification may not result in a financial penalty at all, so long as there is no risk to public or animal health.

The new guidance says that when assessing how severe a breach is, the Rural Payments Agency (RPA) will now take into account how the farmer has engaged with the rules, any possible harm to the environment, or level of risk to public or animal health.

“For example, where record keeping is non-compliant under SMR 1 Nitrate Vulnerable Zones, this will take account of any possible harm to the environment,” it says.

“We’ve also made the penalty levels (percentages) more proportionate under SMR 7 cattle identification and registration and SMR 8 sheep and goat identification where we find that you’ve engaged well with the rules.

“In some limited circumstances, we may consider that you have not been negligent where we find very minor errors under these SMRs and there is no risk to public or animal health.”

Defra has also promised to improve its communication with farmers who receive a cross-compliance inspection during 2022.

To improve communication, farmers will be sent a letter shortly after a visit by an RPA field officer confirming the initial results.

The letter will say whether the visit was found to be compliant or non-compliant and give any necessary guidance as quickly as possible.

Where the visit was found to be non-compliant, this letter will give an initial overview of the results and explain what to expect next.