Queen's Speech December 2019 - Agriculture Bill

Agriculture Bill

“My ministers will bring forward legislation to ensure the United Kingdom’s exit on that date and to make the most of the opportunities that this brings for all the people of the United Kingdom.”

The purpose of the Bill is to:

• ●  Free our farmers from the bureaucratic Common Agricultural Policy and move to a system based on ‘public money for public goods.

• ●  Replace the current subsidy system, which simply pays farmers based on the total amount of land farmed, and instead reward them for the work they do to enhance the environment, improve animal welfare and produce high quality food in a more sustainable way.

• ●  Deliver on the Government’s manifesto commitments to support farmers and land managers to ensure a smooth and phased transition away from the bureaucratic and flawed CAP to a system where farming efficiently and improving the environment go hand in hand.

• ●  Set out the framework for a new Environmental Land Management scheme, underpinned by the principle of ‘public money for public good’.

  The main benefits of the Bill would be:

  • ●  Rewarding farmers and land managers for delivering public goods including improved water quality, increased biodiversity, improved animal welfare and better public access to our countryside.

  • ●  Championing British food with a transparent and fair supply chain from farm to fork.

  • ●  Rewarding farmers who protect our environment. This will significantly contribute to meeting the goals of our 25 Year Environment Plan and to reaching net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

    The main elements of the Bill are:

● A seven-year agricultural transition period in England during which Direct Payments will be phased out. Transitional schemes will enable investment in new equipment, technology and infrastructure to support change during this period.

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• ●  Introducing a new system where we pay for public goods including environmental protection, access to the countryside, and work to reduce flooding.

• ●  Powers to improve transparency and fairness in the supply chain and provide consumers with more information about how their food is produced.

  Territorial extent and application

● The Bill's provisions would extend and apply in the main to England only, with some provisions applying and extending to the whole of the UK. Agricultural policy is devolved to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Key facts

• ●  72 per cent of the total land area in the UK is actively farmed.

• ●  Agriculture contributes around £8.6 billion to the UK economy and employs 1.5 per cent of the workforce.

• ●  The Bill will free the UK from the restrictions of the EU CAP after almost 50 years.

• ●  CAP has impeded productivity and stifled innovation in the farming sector, and failed to protect the environment. For example, agriculture currently contributes more than 88 per cent of UK ammonia emissions and farmland bird numbers have declined by 54 per cent since 1970.

• ●  Agri-environment schemes have demonstrated good value for money (delivering £4 for every £1 spent).

• ●  The Government have received over 100 tests and trials proposals for the first phase of the trials of the new Environmental Land Management scheme, and over 200 for the second phase. The Government is taking 44 forward in the first phase – these will help us to test critical elements of the new scheme.