Further BPS 2015 payments are made to farmers in England
The Rural Payments Agency has confirmed that the total number of farmers in England who have now received their BPS 2015 payments stands at 61,172 – over 70% of those eligible. This means over £845 million, of an estimated total fund of £1.43 billion, has now been paid out for the 2015 Scheme. The RPA’s […]
RPA on track to meet BPS payment targets
Nearly half of all farmers claiming Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) payments this year have received their money ahead of Christmas, the Rural Payments Agency (RPA) has announced. More than 42,000 farmers out of a total 87,095 claimants have received fully validated BPS payments, representing over 48 per cent of all eligible claims. It means the […]
NFU survey shows few BPS payments received by farmers
The latest results from a NFU survey into BPS delivery back up increasing concerns that payments have stalled and dispute RPA figures on payments issued. After an encouraging start with just over 36,000 payments made in the first eight days of the payment window, NFU survey results show less than 25 per cent of farmers […]
RPA remains on track to pay BPS 2015 claims from December
The Rural Payments Agency (RPA) has confirmed it is on track to start making full Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) payments in December and more than half of the claimants in England are set to receive their payment before the end of that month. The Financial Discipline Mechanism (FDM) deduction rate has been confirmed at 1.393041% […]
2015 Basic Payment Scheme entitlement values and National Reserve confirmed
Entitlement values, including those for greening, that will now be used to calculate farmers’ 2015 Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) payments have been confirmed by the Rural Payments Agency (RPA). Entitlement values Under the BPS scheme, farmers need to hold an entitlement for every hectare of eligible land they are claiming on. The size of farmers’ […]
RPA reports good progress towards BPS payments for farmers
With less than a month to go before Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) payments to farmers in England are due to start, the Rural Payments Agency (RPA ) is reporting that good progress is being made. A series of transfers and checks need to be made before payments can be made. The RPA has confirmed that it […]
Dairy farmers set to lose nearly 3p/litre in 2015/16
Based on a survey of its clients and working closely with The Farm Consultancy Group, it forecast that farmers would lose 2.75p/litre before accounting for non-milk income. “Dairy farmers are facing challenging times with little indication that this will be changing in the near future,” said Andrew Vickery, head of rural services at Old Mill. […]
Businesses claim record allowances for investment in plant and machinery
Businesses claimed £79.7 billion in capital allowances for plant and machinery in 2013/14, the highest total since the recession and up by 19% on the £66.9 billion of capital allowances claimed the previous year. However, BNP Paribas Leasing Solutions warns that the rate of investment in new equipment and machinery could start to slow as […]
NFU statement on Defra’s dual use policy for this year
The NFU has said that farmers and growers will be left frustrated after Defra announced it was not allowing dual use for mid-tier environmental stewardship scheme applicants this year. NFU Vice President Guy Smith said: “The NFU has lobbied for the continuation of dual use throughout the development of Countryside Stewardship to allow business flexibility. […]
