General welcome for Pack proposals

WITH reaction to the Pack report on the future model for farm support now flooding in, it would appear that the broad thrust of the proposals are meeting with general acceptance.

In announcing the initial findings, Brian Pack admitted that the easy part of the job had been completed and it would become more difficult and divisive as more details emerged.

Without exception, the main farm lobby organisations have broadly welcomed the shift from the historic basis of support payment to one based on land areas, although the Scottish Tenant Farmers' Association has expressed its concern that this might lead to higher rents, with landlords creaming off the support cash in increased rental values.

Vicki Swales, of RSPB Scotland, saw the proposals in a different light, predicting that the system of area payments proposed in the report would fail. She said that, under the proposals, the majority of support would still be distributed to the most agriculturally productive land, rather than link payments to environmental and other public benefits.

The suggestion that a top-up fund might be used to target specific aims and even to provide support for special sectors of the industry has also been broadly welcomed, although again the SFTA has expressed worries that this might favour larger-scale farmers more able to negotiate the hurdles imposed by fund applications.

The main bone of contention likely to be chewed over in the coming weeks prior to the report being handed over to the Scottish Government appears to be the suggestion that moves could be made prior to reform of the European Union's Common agricultural policy to introduce specific support for the livestock sector.

The CAP has in its hefty bureaucracy Article 68, which allows members states to make special payments to a designated sector.

The cash for this subsidy would come from a creaming off all single farm payments.

NFU Scotland president Jim McLaren expressed concern over this notion, saying it provoked fiery debate last year when it was proposed to help the then beleaguered sheep sector.

However, Alan Craig, president of the Scottish Association of Meat Wholesalers, reckoned the possible use of Article 68 to help revive production both before and after 2013 would be of particular interest to his members.

The round of meetings to gauge wider reaction starts next week (see panel for dates and places).