Spending cuts threaten farming schemes

Conservationists have warned the government against budget cuts that could undermine environmental measures in the countryside.

Some 16 conservationists groups have signed a letter urging DEFRA secretary Caroline Spelman to protect England’s agri-environment schemes.

“We are concerned to hear of proposals to cut the budget available for the delivery of agri-environment schemes in England,” the letter reads.

“We understand that the financial situation is grave and that DEFRA has been asked to contribute to the reduction in the budget deficit, but undertaking cuts that will compromise the ability of government to deliver its stated objectives cannot be the correct route.

“We believe that agri-environment schemes must be protected.”

Signatories to the letter include the Farming and Wildlife Group (FWAG), the British Association for Shooting and Conservation and the RSPB.

Environment schemes bring in money from Brussels to help farmers protect water supplies, carbon stores, wildlife, landscapes and historical sites.

Because of the way they are structured, any cut in domestic funding would result in further money being lost to Brussels.

For every £4 spent by the UK government on agri-environment schemes, an additional £6 is allocated from the Common Agricultural Policy.

So if the government withdraws its support, much of the additional funding will be returned to Europe and entirely lost to the UK economy.

“The impacts would be felt most severely in vulnerable and already disadvantaged rural areas where agri-environment funding injects much needed support to farm and other rural businesses,” warns the letter.

Public access to and enjoyment of the countryside relies on the landscapes, history and wildlife resulting from farming activities, it adds.

So, too, do many rural businesses dependent on those countryside visitors, the letter tells Mrs Spelman.

“We therefore urge you to discard any further reductions to the agri-environment scheme budget that you are considering.”

The schemes are highly important for the environment, farming, and the wider public who value and depend on our countryside, it concludes.

Other signatories include the Moorland Association, Amphibian and Reptile Conservation, Bat Conservation Trust, The Woodland Trust, Buglife, Campaign for National Parks, The Grasslands Trust, The Council for British Archaeology, British Trust for Ornithology, Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust, the Campaign to Protect Rural England, Open Spaces Society, Association of Rivers Trusts and the Wildlife Trusts.