NFU Scotland slams Lords report on LFA

LORDS REPORT DISREGARDS CRUCIAL IMPORTANCE OF LFA 

NFU Scotland believes a House of Lords EU Committee report into the Review of the Less Favoured Areas (LFA) scheme has not recognised the fundamental role LFA support plays in maintaining farming activity in fragile areas and the resulting economic, social and environmental advantages. 

The report, which was publishedbon 4th June, was conducted by the House of Lords EU Sub-Committee D, in response to European Commission proposals about the future designation of LFAs. 

NFU Scotland’s Head of Rural Policy, Jonnie Hall, who gave evidence to the Committee in January this year said: 

“NFU Scotland welcomes the recognition of the House of Lords’ EU Committee that European Commission proposals for redesignation of LFAs across Europe must be modified to take into account the particular challenges faced by UK farmers in general and Scottish farmers in particular.  This clearly reflects the evidence that NFUS gave to the Inquiry in January this year. 

“However, the Committee’s report simply misses the point with regards to the function that LFA support actually plays in practice.  The justification for LFA support is to maintain farming activity in areas exposed to natural handicaps, but not exclusively for the sake of the environment and landscape, as the report suggests. 

“The primary impact of Scotland’s LFA Support Scheme (LFASS), which has a greater relative importance than in the rest of the UK, is to underpin a range of farming and crofting businesses, which in turn deliver a vast range of vitally important and cost-effective economic, environmental and social benefits. 

“The Committee’s assertion that it is unable to draw firm conclusions about the LFA Scheme’s effectiveness in meeting its objectives is surprising; LFASS recipients across the 85% of Scotland which is designated LFA would readily contest this, and NFUS believes that society is extremely well served by supporting farmers in remoter areas who have limited economic options but play a pivotal role in the local community.”