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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to prioritise (a) sustainable farming and (b) environmentally responsible policies.

Defra group’s mission is to protect and enhance the environment – with policies and actions that are also key to sustainable national growth. Defra has four objectives, two of which are to pass on to the next generation a natural environment protected and enhanced for the future and to lead the world in food and farming with a sustainable model of food production. So our approach to farming going forward is designed to move away from direct payments, and to focus on environmentally sustainable and responsible policies.

We believe that agriculture has a key role to play in the protection of the environment and helping us achieve our targets set out in the 25 Year Environment Plan. The Government is committed to maintaining and improving environmental standards.

Our Environmental Land Management (ELM) scheme will be the cornerstone of our new agricultural policy. Founded on the principle of “public money for public goods”, ELM is intended to provide a powerful vehicle for achieving the goals of the 25 Year Environment Plan and commitment to net zero emissions, while supporting our rural economy.

Farmers and other land managers may enter into agreements to be paid for delivering the following public goods set out in the 25 Year Environment Plan:

• clean air
• clean and plentiful water
• thriving plants and wildlife
• protection from and mitigation of environmental hazards
• mitigation of and adaptation to climate change
• beauty, heritage and engagement with the natural environment

Moreover, during the seven-year agricultural transition period, the Government will introduce a range of measures and new schemes to help the industry adapt. This will give farmers time to adapt and restructure their farming business. We will provide grants to farmers, foresters and growers so that they can invest in equipment, technology, and infrastructure that will help their businesses to prosper while improving their productivity and enhancing the environment. The grants scheme will open in 2021 and will offer grants for a proportion of the total cost of the investment.

We will also reform our regulatory system for farming and land management to better meet our domestic objectives of protecting and enhancing the environment, animal welfare, and plant and animal health, as well as supporting a sustainable, productive and resilient agriculture sector.

The Government is committed to ensuring that those engaged in agricultural or horticultural activities meet the rules which protect environmental standards and animal and plant health and welfare. But, we want to break the ties between access to financial support and regulation and focus on the critical outcomes – protection of animals, plants and the environment.