Rural Bulletin: 8 February 2018

£60m of equipment grants on offer from Defra

A new scheme to fund equipment purchases has been revealed by farm minister, George Eustice, this week. 

The Countryside Productivity Small Grant scheme is funded through the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development and will award payments of between £3,000 and £12,000 to eligible farmers to put towards equipment which will improve the productivity of their farm. 

The scheme will be open to applications from 7 February until midday on 14 March. For more information visit: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/countryside-productivity-scheme#small-grants 

Tax changes must be part of tenancy reforms, says TFA

The Government needs to consider both economic and legislative reform in its plans for changes to agricultural tenancies, according to the Tenant Farmers Association. 

“We are pleased that the Government has signalled its intention to bring forward much needed reform to the frameworks surrounding agricultural tenancies,” said George Dunn, TFA chief executive. “But, it must not miss the opportunity to reform the taxation environment within which agricultural tenancies operate.”

Tax is a major driver in the land market and affects decisions landowners make about land occupation, he added. 

Scottish farming income up £245m

Scotland’s Total Income from Farming (Tiff) increased by £245m in 2017, compared to the previous year, according to the Scottish Government’s first estimate.

It put Tiff at £917m, with higher milk and cereal prices thought to be behind the rise – increasing by £117m and £67m year-on-year, respectively.

However, NFU Scotland has warned these figures cover a more complex picture. “It must be kept in mind that Tiff looks at Scottish agriculture plc and masks the huge variation in individual farm business incomes by size and type,” said Jonnie Hall, NFUS director of policy, in a report for Farmers Weekly. “We must not lose sight of the fact that many ‘gains’ are as a result of exchange rates or better yields, rather than improved output price.”

New penalties for farm businesses with high energy usage

A new penalty charge is due to come into force on 1 April, which will affect farm businesses on commercial electricity supply contacts with half-hourly metering.

Half-hourly metering is compulsory for businesses that use 100,000kW or more of electricity a year, or 100kW in any half hour during the day. Farms on half-hourly metering that exceed their agreed maximum import capacity will now be automatically fined under Ofgem’s DCP 161 rules.

While there is currently a small penalty for exceeding agreed import capacity, changes to the rules could see fines increase by more than three times, though penalty amounts are likely to vary significantly across different regions.