Oral Answers to Questions

Laurence Robertson Excerpts

Thursday 12th January 2023 Commons Chamber

[Mr Laurence Robertson (Tewkesbury) (Con)]

5. What recent assessment she has made of the potential impact of the introduction of environmental land management schemes on farmers’ incomes.

[The Minister for Food, Farming and Fisheries (Mark Spencer)]

As my hon. Friend knows, this Government are committed to backing British farmers. Last week I announced that farmers will receive more money for protecting and enhancing nature, and delivering sustainable food production under the environmental land management schemes.

[Mr Robertson]

I thank the Minister for that response. He will be aware that some farmers are concerned about moving away from the basic payment scheme to ELMs. Can he assure farmers that it will be in their financial interests to do so, given the complexity and uncertainties of the schemes, and given the high production costs that farmers are facing to produce food, which is of course their basic job?

[Mark Spencer]

I hope my hon. Friend will have recognised the increase in the payments we are making. Only last week we announced that some of the prices we will pay in countryside stewardship will rise by more than 40%. I encourage his constituents, and farmers up and down the country, to take another look at these schemes, which are a great opportunity for them not only to produce great food, but to enhance the environment and improve our biodiversity.