Official review all set for December
Official review all set for December
AN IN-DEPTH appraisal of hill farming compensatory allowances (HLCAs) is being conducted by government and results are expected in December.
The study is part of an ongoing economic evaluation of various support programmes and will look at the value of HLCAs not only to farmers but how they impact on rural economies, said a Scottish Office spokesman.
The Scottish review is being conducted by Edinburgh University which is using half-hour telephone interviews and local group discussions to build a picture of the cost effectiveness of HLCAs.
One of the 300 Scottish farmers taking part in the study is Donald Biggar, Castle Douglas, president of Dumfries and Stewartry NFU.
"There was a lot of emphasis on the number of people being supported by the farm, the number of employees, stocking rates, what reaction would be to various changes like modulation, and whether farm and household purchases were made locally. There were a lot of questions which were ringing alarm bells."
• An EU commissioned survey of the effectiveness of the CAP in remote areas has hit a problem in Scotland following the early announcement of a freeze on HLCAs for the coming year. "We are suddenly finding a change in attitude among hill farmers. From being very co-operative in telephone interviews, they are now questioning the value of any such research. They say the governments attitude to hill farmers has been made clear," said Ken Thomson, professor of agricultural economics at Aberdeen University.