We note that we are nearing the end of the first year of a seven-year agricultural transition, and Defra does not yet appear to have made key decisions about which bodies will be responsible for delivering the biggest change to farm support in decades. It is only fair to farmers, and to the agencies themselves, that Defra provide fair notice of what it will be asking of its arms-length bodies in the very near future. Defra should explain in its response to this Report at what time it will clearly communicate a final decision about which bodies will have operational responsibility for the ELM schemes. (Paragraph 99) Environmental Land Management and the agricultural transition 45