THE deal struck in Luxembourg last June to reform the Common Agricultural Policy was hailed as the most radical package for a generation, but there are many unanswered questions, according to John Kinnaird, president of NFU Scotland, yesterday.
He said: ''The CAP reforms will be a major change and offer many opportunities, but no firm business decisions can be made until we see the fine details.''
The final legislation is expected next week, but it is plain that a raft of issues will require careful consideration. Not the least of these, according to NFUS, is the question of seasonal lets, either for grazing or arable cropping. Normally these are for a eight-month period, typically from March to October. However, Brussels has decreed that these lets must be for a minimum period of 10 months if farmers are to claim this area as part of their Single Farm Payment.
The definition of what constitutes permanent pasture is another area where there is doubt. The European Commission has expressed its desire that there should be no reduction, largely on environmental grounds.
It is clear that the designation will be different from that ruling when farmers fill in their Integrated Agricultural Control System forms for the current range of support regimes. With the allowable reduction having been moved from 2% to 10%, NFUS believes that there is little chance of Scotland being subject to any future penalties.
The operation of the National Reserve, which will see up to 3% sliced off farmers' SFP, is more complicated. Some farmers who acquired land outside, or during, the reference years of 2000/02 for the SFP, will seek to have their payments topped up from the National Reserve.
There is a wide range of possible scenarios on this front, including new entrants to the industry, who could well be eligible for a full historical SFP, always provided they have had no financial involvement in the industry for five years.
A further complication could arise if all the funds from the reserve in Scotland are exhausted. In that event, it is possible that Scotland could draw on the English or Welsh funding.
Potentially the most contentious topic is ''consolidating payment entitlements'', which means that, in theory, a farmer could willingly surrender his rented area, but still receive the full payment.
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