GORDON DAVIDSON

SCOTLAND’S farmers have still not been given any guarantee by the Scottish Government that crucial Common Agricultural Policy payments will be paid on schedule.

ScotGov’s new agricultural IT system had a faltering launch late last year, and only regained lost ground in the spring of this year after some frantic behind-the-scenes work to bolster its performance. In the end, it was ready to receive the thousands of applications submitted by farmers under the newly-reformed CAP – but attention is now focussed on whether or not the system can, in return, deliver aid payments by the end of December, the timeslot that the industry sought and secured under the pre-reform system.

Holyrood’s Conservative rural affairs spokesman Alex Fergusson noted that the new system’s problems were first flagged up in October last year, when the Scottish Parliament’s public audit committee heard that there were question marks over whether that cash would arrive on time. Mr Fergusson then asked why rural affairs secretary Richard Lochhead was still unable to give guarantees to the Scottish Parliament, despite having had 12 months to address the issue.

Back in June, Mr Lochhead said that while he was working hard to ensure payments arrived by the end of the year, he added the caveat: “of course … I can’t make any guarantee of that”.

The National Farmers Union Scotland has previously said: “Payment in the December window is essential to ease cashflow worries on Scottish farms.”

Mr Fergusson commented: “Prompt payment of this support will be a test of Richard Lochhead’s grip on this situation.

“Farmers need certainty to plan their businesses, yet the Scottish Government’s handling of the whole CAP reform package has left farmers mired in uncertainty. If they don’t know when the money they’re due will hit their bank account, how are they meant to make decisions for the future?

“We’ve seen with the crash in milk, lamb and cereal prices how tough life is for our farmers at the moment. The one thing they need is certainty of support payment in December,” he insisted.

“Throughout the IT system shambles, the Scottish Conservatives have pressed ministers on whether payments would be on time. But one year on, there is still no firm response, and that is sloppy and unacceptable,” said Mr Fergusson. “Governments are elected to make things happen. This SNP government seems increasingly incapable of doing so.”

A spokesperson for Mr Lochhead said: “With over 21,000 applications to process, the Scottish Government is pulling out all the stops to ensure payments start before the end of the year if possible.

“Given that the UK Government faces the same challenges in implementing the complex new CAP regime – and indeed, had to abandon their CAP IT system - it is unfortunate that the Tories are seeking to politicise this important issue.”

For in-depth news and views on Scottish agriculture, see this Friday’s issue of The Scottish Farmer or visit www.thescottishfarmer.co.uk