Thank you for getting in touch with me about the Agriculture and Rural Communities (Scotland) Bill.
I am grateful to the farmers, crofters, and agricultural workers who work hard to supply our food and conserve our landscapes for future generations.
Six years after it was decided that Scotland would need a new agricultural policy, the SNP Government have still not decided on what will come next for our farmers. Agriculture is central to Scotland’s economy and provides countless benefits to the food security, nature and biodiversity, climate change, renewables, agri-tourism, and land management sectors.
The Agriculture and Rural Communities (Scotland) Bill provides the Scottish Ministers with powers to implement a new payment system for farmers and crofters. However, the Bill only provides a framework for future funding and more substantial details will not be provided until further down the line. My Scottish Conservative colleagues and I supported the legislation at Stage 1 but remain concerned about the SNP Government’s use of framework legislation to implement a new agricultural payment system and will demand that MSPs are given the opportunity to have a say on matters of importance.
I understand that there are concerns about moving away from direct payments toward a system that is weighted towards smaller producers. However, the Scottish Conservatives support the retention of direct payments as the best way to support the sector’s net-zero ambitions, promote food security, and enhance the livelihoods of our rural communities. We also believe that large- and small-scale enterprises can work in harmony to support one another to achieve localised biodiversity goals through more regional land use partnerships.
The Scottish Government announced that 70% of future agricultural support will be direct payments. The remaining 30% of support will be for targeted measures like creating wetlands or restoring peatlands. Scottish Conservatives will carefully scrutinise the Bill at Stages 2 and 3 of the legislative process with the aim of ensuring that farmers and crofters are provided with clarity on how future funding will be implemented.
We have concerns about the SNP Government’s ability to support the agricultural sector. The recent Scottish Budget for 2024-25 resulted in a real terms cut of over £98 million in the rural budget. Furthermore, we are continuing to press the government on when the £46 million in ring-fenced Bew Review will be returned to the rural portfolio.
In contrast to the SNP Government’s ambiguity over farming support, the Scottish Conservative’s plan for ‘Scotland’s Food Future’ will not only help the country reach its net-zero targets in a sustainable manner but will help to secure agricultural funding and support the latest technological advances to ensure that Scotland has a sustainable food supply.
Scottish Conservatives will continue to hold the SNP Government to account over its failure to provide clarity on farming support.