Push for rise in moorland payments backed by new research

Push for rise in moorland payments backed by new research

The CLA in the North has welcomed new research by Defra backing up the Association’s call to push for more money to be moved to moorland areas.

The Association has maintained that increased payments for moorland areas would make a significant difference to those farming in the harshest areas of the North.

CLA North Director of Policy & Public Affairs Douglas Chalmers said: “The Defra analysis confirms that farm business incomes will increase significantly and keep up with earnings growth in the wider economy. These benefits will then ripple across greater numbers of upland farms, with significant effects on our natural environment and remoter communities.

“By simply transferring three euros per hectare from our lowland farmers we can add 33 euros to the payment for every moorland hectare. Moorland in this case is defined by an arbitrary line on a map, so farmers in these areas not only have to run their businesses despite permanent natural handicaps but also receive less support than others in the industry.

“Our moorlands and uplands are managed environments and many of the farming families and businesses who manage them for us are on a financial knife edge. If they cannot continue we face a range of risks. This includes loss of tourism opportunities on a local level right through to further national reliance on imported food in an increasingly competitive global market.”