Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of changes to farm support schemes on participation in Countryside Stewardship agreements.

The Government's environmental land management schemes have been developed to support delivery of the ambitious goals set out in the Environmental Improvement Plan, with farmers and land managers playing a critical role in achieving these outcomes.

To support the continued delivery of Environmental Land Management agreements, including Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier, Defra has introduced temporary adjustments that provide additional flexibility to support the delivery of CSHT. Agreement holders using these temporary measures must continue to meet all other scheme and legal requirements and return to the original requirements once conditions allow.

We do not expect recent changes to farm support schemes to reduce participation in Countryside Stewardship agreements.