ENGLISH FARMERS are to be offered up to £100,000 to get out of agriculture – but the Scottish industry does not want a similar exit scheme north of the Border.

Defra environment secretary, George Eustice, announced this week that English farmers who wish to leave the industry will be able to access a one-off lump sum payment from the UK government, based on the average direct payments made to the claimant farmer for the Basic Payment Scheme years 2019 to 2021.

This figure will be capped at £42,500 and multiplied by 2.35 to calculate the total lump sum, meaning that the maximum farmers could receive will be around £100,000.

In return for that, farmers will surrender their entitlements and be expected to either rent or sell their land or surrender their tenancy, in order to create opportunities for new entrants or farmers wishing to expand their businesses. The English exit scheme is due to open this April, with its application period running until the end of September. 

Mr. Eustice said that the move followed last year’s public consultation where the majority of respondents supported the idea: “The purpose of The Lump Sum Exit Scheme is to assist farmers who want to exit the industry to do so in a planned way and provide them with the means to make a meaningful choice about their future.”

Responding to Defra’s news, NFU Scotland director of policy Jonnie Hall said that England’s proposals had been discussed by the Scottish union at the consultation stage, and members had ‘clearly indicated that they would not support a similar approach being adopted by the Scottish Government. 

“There will always be restructuring in agriculture, driven by market and policy forces, but to intentionally accelerate that process may lead to a variety of damaging and unforeseen consequences – not least to the socio-economic fabric of rural Scotland,” said Mr Hall.

Read more: DEFRA proposes 'lump sum exit' for farmers

“While some may find such an exit scheme attractive, and it may enable new and developing businesses, the reality is that if we focus future support on activity rather than blunt area-based payments, this sort of restructuring will happen but without destabilising key sectors or losing the critical mass upstream and downstream required to make Scottish agriculture tick over.

“Instead, we want to see a revised approach to agricultural support that offers the opportunity to all farming and crofting businesses to adjust and, through transition, effectively deliver on food production, climate, and biodiversity ambitions – rather than coercing the contraction of the industry.”

England’s farming leaders were, however, much keener on the idea. English NFU vice-president Tom Bradshaw commented: “For those thinking of leaving the industry, the clarity provided by the government today is incredibly important,” said Mr. Bradshaw. 

“Farming is a job like no other and deciding to leave the industry will be deeply subjective to each person. I would encourage anyone considering this to take advantage of the free and confidential business advice being funded by Defra.”