Carver Knowles Landmark Autumn 2013

Autumn 2013 Chartered Surveyors Property Sales Planning Finance & Grants Valuations CAP reform - Deal done, but not quite dusted Political agreement on the direction of the Common Agricultural Policy was made in June this year and it appears that the new Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) will be similar to the current Single Payment Scheme (SPS) in England. A claim form will still need to be submitted in the spring of each year, entitlements will be required and you must have eligible land at your disposal. However there are a few fundamental changes and Mike Cluley looks at what practical problems these could present and how they may affect your current system. All claims will need to be made online. Paper forms will not be accepted after 2014. In 2013 Carver Knowles submitted 72% of all claims online and with the RPA improving the online system it is hoped that this will increase to 100% next year. We will be offering a ‘submission only’ service for those who do not have a computer but are happy with their RLR maps, Cross Compliance and crop codes. At least 95% of the permanent grassland area must be retained at national level.This is similar to the current Cross Compliance regulation however the new base year will be 2012 plus any additional land claimed as permanent grassland in 2015. Consecutive temporary grass leys that continue for more than five years will become permanent grassland even if they are reseeded. Crop Diversification. If the arable land on your farm is between 10 and 30 hectares, two crops must be grown, with the main crop not exceeding 75% of the area. For those with more than 30 acres of arable land, there must be at least 3 crops, with the two main crops not exceeding 95% of the area. This is going to lead to a more complex crop coding system, particularly as spring and winter varieties will be considered as different crops. Ecological Focus Areas. If you have more than 15 hectares of arable land, you will have to maintain at least 5% of that area as an Ecological Focus Area (EFA) for 2015. This is designed to provide environmental benefits without necessarily taking land out of production. The current rules are clear that any features that are included within an Entry or Higher Level Stewardship Scheme will not count as that would be ‘double funding’. The final requirements of the EFAs will be known by next August, but we expect them to include landscape “With the Single Payment Scheme having finally become a relatively straightforward process, the BPS promises to add more complexity and planning to the subsidy regime.” features (hedges and trees), buffer strips, fallow land and nitrogen-fixing crops. This may present an additional administrative burden if boundary features need to be recorded on the BPS claim forms or on RLR plans. Entitlements. England has two options with how it deals with entitlements, either retain the current system and roll over the entitlements for the new scheme or issue new entitlements to all 2012 claimants based on their current claimable area. Early indications are that the current system will be rolled over. Therefore if you require additional entitlements or you have excess to sell, there will still be a market, but prices may increase if they are rolled over. If you have any issues relating to the new Basic Payment Scheme or the existing Single Payment Scheme we would be happy to discuss these with you.