Category: Policy & Business

Defra has announced the third Woodland Carbon Guarantee (WCaG) auction will take place online between 26th October and 1st November.  The WCaG provides owners of new woodland projects the option to sell their captured carbon in the form of carbon credits, called Woodland Carbon Units to the Government for a guaranteed price, protected against inflation, every 5 to 10 years for 35 years.  A further £10m, from the scheme’s £50m budget is available in this round.  Applications to the scheme must be made by 11th October.  In order to apply, applicants must first register their project with the Woodland Carbon Code (WCC).  The WCC verifies and records the amount of carbon a project will capture and have available to sell in the future.  The Forestry Commission is telling applicants to ensure they leave enough time to complete the WCC regsistration and the WCaG application as these can take 1 to 2 weeks.

The Welsh Government has released its ‘Agriculture: Summer Update 2020′ which gives a round-up of what is currently going on within the industry in Wales including:

• Keydates – The Glastir Small Grants: Water window is about to close for applications on 4th September.  The claim deadline for the Farm Business Grant Window 7 is on 25th September and the final date to claim for the Glastir Small Grants – Landscape and Pollinators 2019 is 30th September.
• A Rural Payment Wales (RPW) statement on measures put in place due to Coronavirus, including a reminder of Customer Contact Centre details, Government Gateway verification and how checks & inspections will be carried out.
• Consultations currently underway including the simplification of the BPS and RDS for 2021 and also tackling the supply chain issues across the UK dairy sector.
• Proposals to continue to develop future agriculture support around the Sustainable Land Management framework as outlined in the Sustainable Farming and Our Land consultation
• An article on preparing for the end of the Brexit Transition Period at the end of the year.

The update also includes details of the farming charities and information on topical livestock issues and interventions.  The Update can be found at https://gov.wales/agriculture-summer-update-2020

The Government has announced the ban on evictions from residential properties will be extended for a further four weeks in both England and Wales.  The ban from evicting Tenants from their properties was due to end on Sunday 23rd August, but will now run until Sunday 20th September and will mean there will have been no legal evictions for six months.  The Government has also announced, for England only, the notice period to evict a residential Tenant will be increased to six months.  Both measures have been introduced to give Tenants more protection from eviction due to the affects of Coronavirus, with the longer notice period designed to give them certainty over the winter.  This could, however, cause problems where an agricultural Tenant has let out a farm cottage on an AST and their FBT is coming to an end and they are required to give the farmland and cottage(s) back with vacant possession.  The six month notice period does not extend to cases where a Landlord is seeking eviction because of anti-social behaviour, domestic abuse or if they have not received rent for over a year from the Tenant.  Once the courts resume eviction hearings, these serious cases will be prioritised.  An independent poll for the National Residential Landlords Association recently found 87% of private Tenants had actually been able to continue to pay their rent as normal throughout the pandemic, with a further 8% making arrangements with their Landlord to either pay a reduced amount or have a rent free period.

The Government has set out how it will use ‘ambitious, legally binding targets’  to protect and enhance the natural environment under its landmark Environmental Bill.  It has released a policy paper setting out its initial thinking on possible targets which will be explored over the coming months.  Once proposed targets are developed, views will be sort via a public consultation, expected in early 2022.  The Government is looking to introduce at least one long-term target in four priority areas.  The proposed objectives for targets and the priority areas include:

• Water – targets to tackle pollution from agriculture and waste water.  Also a target on water demand to reduce the amount abstracted
• Air Quality – targets to reduce public exposure to fine particulate matter (PM2.5)
• Resource Efficiency & Waste Reduction – targets to increase resource productivity and reduce residual waste together with plastic pollution
• Biodiversity – targets to restore and create wildlife habitats and to increase species populations on land and also in fresh water and the sea

Once set, the new targets will become legally binding and apply to any future Government.  The new Office for Environmental Protection will report annually on the progress towards these targets and will have the power to hold the Government to account.  The policy paper can be found via https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/environment-bill-2020/august-2020-environment-bill-environmental-targets.  

Defra is currently consulting on a new England Tree Strategy.  The aim of the strategy is to accelerate woodland creation and also to manage and protect established trees and woodland.  The consultation which closes on 11th September is seeking views on:

• how to expand, protect and improve public & private trees and woodlands
• the increased role trees and woodlands can play in supporting the economy
• how best to further connect people to nature
• the most effective way in which trees and woodlands can be created and managed to help combat climate change

The full consultation can be found at https://consult.defra.gov.uk/forestry/england-tree-strategy/

Defra has released a ‘Countryside Stewardship Greening Amendment Form’.  This relates to Countryside Stewardship Mid and Higher Tier applications for agreements which are due to commence 1st January 2021.  Because the Greening requirements have been abolished in England under the BPS for 2021 onwards, the RPA has recognised applicants may now want to use some of their previous EFA land as part of their CS application.  From 2019, there were 19 CS options for Higher Tier and 18 for Mid Tier which fell under the ‘double funding’ rules and it was not possible to overlap these CS options with EFAs on the BPS application.  The form allows applicants to:

• add more land parcels containing any of the 19 listed CS options
• increase the amount of land already declared in an application for these options
• change the location of any of the 19 options.

The form can be found on the Gov.uk website via https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/greening-amendment-form-countryside-stewardship.  A list of the 19 affected options can be found at section 3.3.1 in the CS Guidance manual at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/countryside-stewardship-mid-tier-including-water-quality-capital-items-manual.  The form only relates to Agreements due to commence in 2021 and it is unclear about those agreements which started in 2019 and 2020.  However, as these are governed by EU rules it is probably not possible to change them.

The Scottish Land Commission has published two more protocols as part of its Land Rights and Responsibilities Good Practice Programme.  The Diversification of Ownership and Tenure and Negotiating Transfer of Land to Communties, are the 5th and 6th protocols in this programme.  They set out practical steps which land owners can take to achieve a more diverse pattern of land ownership, management and use, focusing on how land owners can create opportunities for local businesses, residents or community organisations through purchases, leases and other collaborations.  The protocols encourage land owners to assess their land and buildings to see if they are being used in a productive and sustainable way which contributes to the business or whether there are opportunities to work with others.  Further information and a route map can be found on the Land Commission website at https://landcommission.gov.scot/our-work/good-practice/diversification-of-ownership-and-tenure-negotiating-transfer-of-land-to-communities

The biggest reform of the Planning system in England since 1947 is being promised by the Government.  It released a Planning White Paper and Consultation, ‘Planning for the Future’, on the 6th August looking to free-up constraints on development in order to drive economic growth whilst, at the same time, protecting important areas and delivering ‘sustainable, beautiful, safe and useful development’.

The full consultation can be found at – https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/planning-for-the-future.  The closing date for consultation responses is 29th October.  In summary, the main proposals are as follows;

• areas will be ‘zoned’ as happens in many other countries.  Areas designated as ‘Growth’ will automatically have outline Planning Permission – this will cover substantial development sites including new towns and villages.  ‘Renewal’ areas will cover smaller-scale developments (including sites in rural areas) plus densification and infill in existing towns and cities.  The final designation will be ‘Protected Areas’ where building would be restricted – but not prohibited altogether.
• there will be national targets for housebuilding (300,000 homes per year) which would be split between Local Authorities.  They would have to allocate enough Growth or Renewal zones to meet their allocations.
• revised Local Plans will set out the zoning along with design criteria for development.  The whole Planning system would be made more transparent, certain and efficient, with statutory time limits enacted.
• there is to be a greater focus on the quality of development.  Design guidance and codes are to be prepared locally with community involvement, and developers will have to take greater account of such codes.
• there will be more focus in the system on the number of homes actually built rather than those merely given permission.
• current developer obligations under Section 106 agreements will be replaced by a reformed Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) which would be standardised across the country.

Although the plans look radical, there are questions on how effective they might be in delivering the objectives of more houses (and consequently more affordable housing costs) and thus driving economic growth.  For a start, the greatest demand for housing is around London and in South East ‘hotspots’ like Oxford and Cambridge.  The existing Green Belt looks like being designated wholesale as a Protected Area – thus limiting potential development in these areas from the outset.  Then there is the zoning process.  This seems likely to merely shift the arguments over development versus conservation away from individual projects to the initial zoning decisions.  Lastly, the idea of good quality development and especially ‘beautiful’ development is fraught with problems as what is ‘good’ in this context is largely a matter of personal taste.

For rural areas it seems likely that almost everything will be classed as ‘Protected’.  It will still be possible to secure development permission, but the White Paper envisages a system of approvals on a case-by-case basis – pretty much exactly the same as happens now.  There seems a strong presumption that the countryside should be ‘kept as it is’ with the danger that this just turns it into a living museum.  The designation as being ‘Protected’ may actually make it harder to secure development and drive growth. 

The Welsh Government has launched a consultation on future agricultural support.  Titled ‘Sustainable Farming and Our Land: Simplifying Agricultural Support’, it is asking for views on the Welsh Government’s proposals to changes to the current CAP regulations in the interim until the new Sustainable Land Management scheme is introduced.  These changes will apply to the new domestic BPS and Rural Development Programme, which will commence in the next scheme year (2021).  The Government’s proposals are intentially limited to adjusting or removing areas of the legislation considered no longer necessary in Wales.  It must be noted though, significant changes are expected when the new Sustainable Farming Schemes are introduced from 2022.  The proposals include:

• Removing the Crop Diversification rules under Greening.  The EFA requirements and Permanent Pasture retention rules will no longer be part of Greening, but they will be retained under the Cross Compliance regulations.  There will be no loss of support, as the Greening element (worth appoximately 30% of total payment) will be subsumed into the BPS.  In Wales EFA requirements only affect about 3% of claimants as the remaining automatically qualify through the permanent pasture exemption.
• Reallocating any unused National Ceiling annually to the BPS.
• Simplifying cross-border claims, so that the Welsh payment can be made in isolation of the English claim.
• Closing the Young Farmers Scheme to new entrants from 2021.  This currently tops-up payments for five years; those already in the scheme will continue to receive their remaining top-ups.
• Allowing supporting documents to be submitted up to 31st December in the relevant claim year.  The application deadline and late claim penalties will remain unchanged.
• Extending the National Reserve categories to include those who have purchased new land or committed to a lease of 5 years or more since 2015.  The 2 year usage rule will remain to ‘feed’ the National Reserve.  Those in the existing Young and New Entrants categories will have priority.
• Reducing the inspection rate to 3%.
• Simplifying the overdeclaration penalty rules by removing the current ‘yellow card’ legisltation.
• Introducing advance and balance payments, so that 70% will automatically be paid in October following basic checks and a balance payment from February once full validation checks have been completed.
• Removing the ‘Negative List’ which means operators of railways, waterworks, real estate services or sports and recreational grounds are deemed not eligible to apply for BPS under the current Active Farmer rules.  However, minimum levels of agricultural activity will be retained as current.  England and Scotland removed the Negative List a few years ago.
• Making the growing of hemp not eligible for BPS – there has been no successful claim in Wales since 2015

Under Rural Development the Welsh Government is proposing to replace the EU’s mission, objectives and priorities with a Welsh-specific definition.  However, all the EU’s current measures available to support Rural Development will be available but with some minor adjustments.

The proposals also include amendments to governanace and administrative arrangements, European networking and monitoring & evaluation and reporting.  The full consultation can be found at: https://gov.wales/sustainable-farming-and-our-land-simplifying-agricultural-support.  Responses need to be submitted by midnight on 23rd October 2020.