The Agriculture Bill has today (November 11th) been given Royal
Assent.
Responding to this announcement, CLA President Mark
Bridgeman said:
“After three years, it’s welcome news that the Agriculture Bill
has finally passed into UK law.
“This is only the beginning, not the end of the process for the
farming industry. The Agriculture Act serves to remind us of the
profound responsibilities we, in agriculture, have; to feed the
nation, to help mitigate climate change and reverse biodiversity
decline, and also to help support our local communities through
job creation and economic development.
“With Government’s new powers, it must commit itself to working
hand in glove with organisations such as the CLA to ensure future
policies actually work effectively on the ground, while also
having the ambition to recognise the potential of the rural
economy to answer some of the greatest questions facing the
country, such as climate change.”
The announcement that the Agriculture Bill has received Royal
Assent comes after the CLA wrote to 200 rural MPs, warning that
Government is not ready to begin the transition to the new public
goods scheme, with large cuts in the Basic Payment Scheme.
It warned that, while the bulk of future investment will be
through the new Environmental Land Management scheme (ELMS), it
will not be fully available to farmers for four years. Meanwhile,
cuts to the old scheme will begin in January 2021.
