The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) has been reformed yet again and at midnight on 31st December 2014 it was out with the old, as the Single Payment Scheme (SPS) ceased and in with the new, as the Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) was introduced. This is the mechanism through which farmers will receive support payments via the EU.
The new scheme is also meant to be at the forefront of the Government’s drive for “digital by default”; the idea being that in the first instance every farmer was meant to be able to verify their identity online. But in reality it appears the BPS has come too soon for this online verification process which is causing frustration to the farmers who have been invited to register so far.
This must be a big headache to the Rural Payments Agency (RPA) which is tasked with implementing the BPS. Therefore the RPA has decided to open up its helpline to allow farmers to verify their identity over the telephone which will then enable the RPA to allow farmers to access their online BPS system.
Having now done this with a few clients myself I am pleased to report that the telephone verification system appears to be working well and is reasonably easy although whether the RPA will be able to cope with the volume of calls that are now likely to flood in over the coming weeks remains to be seen.
Once farmers have then accessed the RPA’s online BPS system they need to check their business details are correct, that the appropriate people are registered against the business and that the plans of their land are up to date. At present there is not much else that can be done online but with only 4 months to go until the application deadline, there is clearly still a lot of work to be done to ensure the system becomes functional in time for farmers to be able to make their claim.
Memories of the disastrous implementation of the SPS back in 2005 are etched into the memory of many a farmer and thus there is nervousness that the faltering start to the online identity verification process may be a prelude of much worse to come. However, I do hope that this time the RPA will have learnt from the mistakes of the past.
The fact that they have organised a telephone identity verification system at relatively short notice is to be commended and I just hope the RPA’s new BPS software will be similarly user friendly.
James Stephen MRICS FAAV
Partner
Rural Practice Chartered Surveyor, Wells
T: 01749 683381
E: james.stephen@carterjonas.co.uk
A property blog written and authored by our specialist blogging team, discussing all and any matter relating to the residential, rural and commercial property markets.
Showing posts with label CAP. Show all posts
Showing posts with label CAP. Show all posts
Monday, 12 January 2015
Monday, 17 November 2014
Quietly confident about the introduction of the BPS
DEFRA has recently published its latest update on the CAP reform rules which surround the introduction of the new Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) next year.
It is ironic that farmers are being urged by DEFRA not to delay registering themselves for the new Basic Payment Scheme (BPS), and yet the registration rollout programme itself has been delayed. With the memories of the disastrous introduction of the Single Payment Scheme (SPS) back in 2005 still heavily imprinted on the mind of most farmers and land agents, one hopes the current delay is not a portent of things to come.
However, a DEFRA spokesman has commented, “We have learned a lot of lessons from the past. What happened in 2005 is still in everyone’s mind – but that is not going to happen again”. Indeed having met a number of the senior Rural Payments Agency team myself earlier in the year, I genuinely think they have a much better grasp of what is required than was the case back in 2005.
Therefore I am quietly confident that the introduction of the BPS will go better than its predecessor scheme, but equally farmers should not underestimate the time that may be required getting registered on the new system and then learning how to use the online mapping tools and the new application process.
The most important initial step will be for farmers and land agents to verify their identity on line. This will involve logging on to the Gov.uk Verify website where your identity will be verified by one of five third-party identity assurance providers.
In order to do this farmers will be asked a number of questions about their personal circumstances and finances and to make this process go smoothly you will need either a current driver’s licence or passport and details of at least two of the following; bank account/credit card, personal loan or mortgage, gas or electricity bill, mobile phone contract or voter registration information.
It is understood that if you have all the necessary information to hand the registration process can be relatively simple and will only take 10 minutes or so but if not you will be directed to a telephone helpline and in extremis you will be able to contact a digital support centre, the nearest of which in this area is currently in Exeter.
However, unlike when the SPS was introduced in 2005, DEFRA has recognised the importance of the professional advisors who for many years have played a vital role in assisting farmers complete their application forms. Thus, with everything now having to be submitted online, DEFRA is encouraging professionals, such as land agents like myself, to help farmers get set up for the new digital era which is upon us whether we like it or not.
James Stephen MRICS FAAV
Partner
Rural Practice Chartered Surveyor, Wells
T: 01749 683381
E: james.stephen@carterjonas.co.uk
It is ironic that farmers are being urged by DEFRA not to delay registering themselves for the new Basic Payment Scheme (BPS), and yet the registration rollout programme itself has been delayed. With the memories of the disastrous introduction of the Single Payment Scheme (SPS) back in 2005 still heavily imprinted on the mind of most farmers and land agents, one hopes the current delay is not a portent of things to come.
However, a DEFRA spokesman has commented, “We have learned a lot of lessons from the past. What happened in 2005 is still in everyone’s mind – but that is not going to happen again”. Indeed having met a number of the senior Rural Payments Agency team myself earlier in the year, I genuinely think they have a much better grasp of what is required than was the case back in 2005.
Therefore I am quietly confident that the introduction of the BPS will go better than its predecessor scheme, but equally farmers should not underestimate the time that may be required getting registered on the new system and then learning how to use the online mapping tools and the new application process.
The most important initial step will be for farmers and land agents to verify their identity on line. This will involve logging on to the Gov.uk Verify website where your identity will be verified by one of five third-party identity assurance providers.
In order to do this farmers will be asked a number of questions about their personal circumstances and finances and to make this process go smoothly you will need either a current driver’s licence or passport and details of at least two of the following; bank account/credit card, personal loan or mortgage, gas or electricity bill, mobile phone contract or voter registration information.
It is understood that if you have all the necessary information to hand the registration process can be relatively simple and will only take 10 minutes or so but if not you will be directed to a telephone helpline and in extremis you will be able to contact a digital support centre, the nearest of which in this area is currently in Exeter.
However, unlike when the SPS was introduced in 2005, DEFRA has recognised the importance of the professional advisors who for many years have played a vital role in assisting farmers complete their application forms. Thus, with everything now having to be submitted online, DEFRA is encouraging professionals, such as land agents like myself, to help farmers get set up for the new digital era which is upon us whether we like it or not.
James Stephen MRICS FAAV
Partner
Rural Practice Chartered Surveyor, Wells
T: 01749 683381
E: james.stephen@carterjonas.co.uk
Monday, 10 November 2014
Latest update on the CAP reform
DEFRA has recently published its latest update on the CAP reform rules which surround the introduction of the new Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) next year.
There are still areas of uncertainty but the long awaited rules concerning hedges and how they can be used to contribute to a farmer’s “Ecological Focus Area” (EFA) requirement have been clarified.
Any farmer who has more than 15 hectares of arable land will have to “set aside” 5% of their arable land as an EFA. There are some exemptions to this rule for farmers with a high proportion of grass but if these exemptions do not apply farmers will have to incorporate the appropriate EFAs in to their farming system.
There are five different types of EFA:
1.Fallow land
2.Hedges
3.Buffer Strips
4.Catch crops and cover crops
5.Nitrogen fixing crop
It is the rules concerning hedges which have been exercising farmers’ minds in this area because they are an obvious ecological resource which many would like to use towards their EFA requirements and now the rules have been clarified in what appears to be a reasonably sensible manner.
Basically every metre length of hedge is to be regarded as providing 10 sqm of EFA and so farmers will need to measure the length of qualifying hedges on their land to calculate the deemed EFA area. But importantly DEFRA have also clarified the definition of what will be considered to be a hedge and which hedges will qualify as an EFA.
As far as the definition of a hedge is concerned, there are no maximum or minimum width or height limits but the hedge must be more than 20m long and there must be less than 2m from the ground to the lowest leaves. Gaps of up to 20m, including gateways are allowed in hedges.
However, not all hedges will qualify as an EFA. It is only those hedges which are on or adjacent to arable land in the farmer’s control that will qualify although hedges which are separated from the arable land by an ineligible feature under the BPS rules, such as a ditch of more than 2m wide or a hard track will not qualify. If the hedge is separated from the arable land by a fence only the hedge will qualify.
If the farmer is responsible for farming both sides of the hedge, even if one side is in permanent pasture, then the full 10 sqm per m length of hedge can be claimed but if the other side of the hedge is farmed by another farmer then only 5 sqm can be claimed. If the other side of the hedge is a road, the farmer can make a full claim.
Finally DEFRA had originally stated that using hedges to contribute to a farmer’s EFA requirements may result in a delay in the farmer receiving payment of the BPS in 2015. However, DEFRA have now said there may not be delays as they are looking into an ‘approach’ to prevent this. What this will be we do not know but it seems DEFRA are backtracking a little on their previous warning.
Therefore, although there is still plenty of work to be done before the first BPS claims can be made next year, some of the crucial detail is beginning to become clear.
James Stephen MRICS FAAV
Partner
Rural Practice Chartered Surveyor, Wells
T: 01749 683381
E: james.stephen@carterjonas.co.uk
There are still areas of uncertainty but the long awaited rules concerning hedges and how they can be used to contribute to a farmer’s “Ecological Focus Area” (EFA) requirement have been clarified.
Any farmer who has more than 15 hectares of arable land will have to “set aside” 5% of their arable land as an EFA. There are some exemptions to this rule for farmers with a high proportion of grass but if these exemptions do not apply farmers will have to incorporate the appropriate EFAs in to their farming system.
There are five different types of EFA:
1.Fallow land
2.Hedges
3.Buffer Strips
4.Catch crops and cover crops
5.Nitrogen fixing crop
It is the rules concerning hedges which have been exercising farmers’ minds in this area because they are an obvious ecological resource which many would like to use towards their EFA requirements and now the rules have been clarified in what appears to be a reasonably sensible manner.
Basically every metre length of hedge is to be regarded as providing 10 sqm of EFA and so farmers will need to measure the length of qualifying hedges on their land to calculate the deemed EFA area. But importantly DEFRA have also clarified the definition of what will be considered to be a hedge and which hedges will qualify as an EFA.
As far as the definition of a hedge is concerned, there are no maximum or minimum width or height limits but the hedge must be more than 20m long and there must be less than 2m from the ground to the lowest leaves. Gaps of up to 20m, including gateways are allowed in hedges.
However, not all hedges will qualify as an EFA. It is only those hedges which are on or adjacent to arable land in the farmer’s control that will qualify although hedges which are separated from the arable land by an ineligible feature under the BPS rules, such as a ditch of more than 2m wide or a hard track will not qualify. If the hedge is separated from the arable land by a fence only the hedge will qualify.
If the farmer is responsible for farming both sides of the hedge, even if one side is in permanent pasture, then the full 10 sqm per m length of hedge can be claimed but if the other side of the hedge is farmed by another farmer then only 5 sqm can be claimed. If the other side of the hedge is a road, the farmer can make a full claim.
Finally DEFRA had originally stated that using hedges to contribute to a farmer’s EFA requirements may result in a delay in the farmer receiving payment of the BPS in 2015. However, DEFRA have now said there may not be delays as they are looking into an ‘approach’ to prevent this. What this will be we do not know but it seems DEFRA are backtracking a little on their previous warning.
Therefore, although there is still plenty of work to be done before the first BPS claims can be made next year, some of the crucial detail is beginning to become clear.
James Stephen MRICS FAAV
Partner
Rural Practice Chartered Surveyor, Wells
T: 01749 683381
E: james.stephen@carterjonas.co.uk
Monday, 4 November 2013
The Common Agricultural Policy is yet again being reformed
As many readers may be aware the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) is yet again being reformed. In theory the new regime should have come in to force on 1st January this year, but as with all things “European” nothing is straightforward when you need to get 27 member states to agree on anything, let alone a far reaching and complicated reform of the agricultural subsidy regime stretching from Finland in the North to Greece in the South and Portugal in the West to Bulgaria in the East.
However in June this year the EU Agriculture Ministers agreed the principles for the next reform package which is due to start on 1st January 2015. As a result the old regime has had to be rolled forward for 2013 and 2014, which in itself poses problems, while the detail concerning the new regime continues to be hammered out at both a European and member state level.
As you can imagine this is a fearfully complicated system but as part of this regime, our government, in the form of DEFRA has just published its consultation package for England. The government is inviting people to make their opinion known on a whole variety of issues and a couple of the most important questions I have identified are:
1. How much money should be diverted from direct payments for farmers (Pillar 1) to Rural Development funds (Pillar 2). The government favours 15% to be diverted from Pillar 1 to Pillar 2 which is the maximum allowed by the EU but now is your chance to make your view known.
2. Should we redistribute the Pillar 1 support to farmers in favour of upland farmers at the expense of lowland farmers. There appears to be a general under current of support for this proposal because only a relatively small reduction in payments to lowland farmers would make a significant difference to upland farmers. However, as most lowland livestock farmers still rely on subsidy payments to make a profit, unlike arable farmers, there may well be a difference of opinion on this matter within the lowland farming community – again now is your chance to voice your opinion.
Within the consultation paper the government has also made a number of important decisions, the most significant of which for farmers here in mid-Somerset is that the existing regime of entitlements will be rolled forward in to the new scheme.
"This is a very important point because farmers will not have to apply for new entitlements under the new system as they did when the current scheme was introduced in 2005. This application process caused a massive administrative headache which took years to sort out. The practical effect of this is that the introduction of the new Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) as it will be known, should be much more straightforward when it comes in to force in 2015. But, another side effect of this is that the capital value of existing “entitlements” is likely to rise to reflect the fact that they will now be around until at least 2020 rather than potentially being phased out at the end of 2014.
The timescales for the introduction of the CAP reform package are very tight indeed and as a result the government needs to report back to the EU on the latest consultation by 31st December this year so if you want to make your views known, now is your chance and so I suggest you download the DEFRA consultation document and get consulting.
However in June this year the EU Agriculture Ministers agreed the principles for the next reform package which is due to start on 1st January 2015. As a result the old regime has had to be rolled forward for 2013 and 2014, which in itself poses problems, while the detail concerning the new regime continues to be hammered out at both a European and member state level.
As you can imagine this is a fearfully complicated system but as part of this regime, our government, in the form of DEFRA has just published its consultation package for England. The government is inviting people to make their opinion known on a whole variety of issues and a couple of the most important questions I have identified are:
1. How much money should be diverted from direct payments for farmers (Pillar 1) to Rural Development funds (Pillar 2). The government favours 15% to be diverted from Pillar 1 to Pillar 2 which is the maximum allowed by the EU but now is your chance to make your view known.
2. Should we redistribute the Pillar 1 support to farmers in favour of upland farmers at the expense of lowland farmers. There appears to be a general under current of support for this proposal because only a relatively small reduction in payments to lowland farmers would make a significant difference to upland farmers. However, as most lowland livestock farmers still rely on subsidy payments to make a profit, unlike arable farmers, there may well be a difference of opinion on this matter within the lowland farming community – again now is your chance to voice your opinion.
Within the consultation paper the government has also made a number of important decisions, the most significant of which for farmers here in mid-Somerset is that the existing regime of entitlements will be rolled forward in to the new scheme.
"This is a very important point because farmers will not have to apply for new entitlements under the new system as they did when the current scheme was introduced in 2005. This application process caused a massive administrative headache which took years to sort out. The practical effect of this is that the introduction of the new Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) as it will be known, should be much more straightforward when it comes in to force in 2015. But, another side effect of this is that the capital value of existing “entitlements” is likely to rise to reflect the fact that they will now be around until at least 2020 rather than potentially being phased out at the end of 2014.
The timescales for the introduction of the CAP reform package are very tight indeed and as a result the government needs to report back to the EU on the latest consultation by 31st December this year so if you want to make your views known, now is your chance and so I suggest you download the DEFRA consultation document and get consulting.
James Stephen MRICS FAAV
Partner
Rural Practice Chartered Surveyor, Wells
T: 01749 683381
E: james.stephen@carterjonas.co.uk
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