Environmental Land Management Scheme

Public Accounts Committee Closed Inquiry
Opened: 6 Sep 2021 Closed: 1 Mar 2022 Parliament page
The UK was part of the EU’s Common Agriculture Policy (CAP) framework for financial support to farmers and rural development funding for more than 40 years before Brexit. In 2019-20 farmers in England received over £1.8 billion in direct payment subsidies, based mainly on the amount of land farmed. In … Read more
13 Recommendations
18 Conclusions
1 Report
2 Oral sessions
4 Letters
2 Events
Activity timeline 8 events
9 Mar
2022
Correspondence
1 Mar
2022
Report published
8 Feb
2022
Correspondence
31 Jan
2022
Correspondence
9 Jan
2022
Report published
16 Nov
2021
Correspondence
21 Oct
2021
Oral evidence
21 Oct
2021
Oral evidence
Oral evidence sessions 2 sessions
21 Oct 2021
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Environmental Land Management Scheme
Caroline Ayre · Confederation of Forest Industries Jenna Hegarty · Royal Society for Protection of Birds (RSPB) Lynette Steel · Tenants Farmers Association Professor Rob Fraser · University of Kent Tom Bradshaw · National Farmers' Union (NFU)
21 Oct 2021
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Environmental Land Management Scheme
David Kennedy · Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Jenna Hegarty · Royal Society for Protection of Birds (RSPB) Lynette Steel · Tenants Farmers Association Maria Bellissimo · Confederation of Forest Industries Paul Caldwell · Rural Payments Agency Professor Rob Fraser · University of Kent Tamara Finkelstein · Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Tom Bradshaw · National Farmers' Union (NFU)
Title HC No. Published Items Response
Thirty-First Report - Environmental Land Management Scheme HC 639 9 Jan 2022 31 Responded
Recommendations & Conclusions
15 results
Clear
3 Recommendation Not Addressed
Thirty-First Report - Environmenta…
We are not convinced that the Department sufficiently understands how its environmental and productivity ambitions...
We are not convinced that the Department sufficiently understands how its environmental and productivity ambitions will impact the food and farming sector over the next decade. Farmers will be required to free up land currently used for food production to … Read more
Government Response
The government's response discusses a general PAC conclusion about civil service skills shortages, which does not address the specific recommendation about farming programmes' impact on food production and prices.
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4 Recommendation Not Addressed
Thirty-First Report - Environmenta…
Despite committing to delaying the early stages of SFI if either the Department or farmers...
Despite committing to delaying the early stages of SFI if either the Department or farmers were not ready, the Department has not specified what would trigger such a delay. Opinion within the farming sector is divided over whether the Department’s … Read more
Government Response
The government's response discusses a general PAC conclusion about tracking benefits and costs, which does not address the specific recommendation about farmer readiness and delay triggers.
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5 Recommendation Not Addressed
Thirty-First Report - Environmenta…
The Department has not yet done enough to gain farmers’ trust in its ability to...
The Department has not yet done enough to gain farmers’ trust in its ability to successfully deliver the programme. Farmers’ confidence in the Department was severely damaged by a poor history of delivery under previous agricultural subsidy schemes, and the … Read more
Government Response
The government's response did not address the committee's conclusion regarding the Department's failure to gain farmers' trust due to slow information release, instead responding to an unrelated point about efficiency drives.
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6 Recommendation Not Addressed
Thirty-First Report - Environmenta…
The Department is not doing enough to support farmers through the transition to the new...
The Department is not doing enough to support farmers through the transition to the new schemes and alleviate any anxiety its plans are causing. The removal of direct payments would have reduced the average net profit of farms in England … Read more
Government Response
The government's response did not address the recommendation to identify further support for farmers during the transition or support for their well-being, instead responding to an unrelated point about departmental capacity during emergencies.
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1 Conclusion Not Addressed
Thirty-First Report - Environmenta…
On the basis of a report by the Comptroller and Auditor General, we took evidence...
On the basis of a report by the Comptroller and Auditor General, we took evidence from the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (the Department) and the Rural Payments Agency.2 We also took evidence from the National Farmers’ Union, … Read more
Government Response
The government's response did not address the committee's introductory statement about evidence collection, instead responding to an unrelated point about efficiency and cost shunting.
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8 Conclusion Not Addressed
Thirty-First Report - Environmenta…
The ELM scheme consists of three components: • The Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI), which will...
The ELM scheme consists of three components: • The Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI), which will pay farmers for actions to manage their land in an environmentally sustainable way; 2 C&AG’s Report, The Environmental Land Management scheme, Session 2021–22, HC 664, … Read more
Government Response
The government response describes the Future Farming and Countryside Programme and the ELM scheme's components and timeline, but it does not address the committee's observation.
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14 Conclusion Not Addressed
Thirty-First Report - Environmenta…
The Department is developing the ELM scheme through a system of ‘co-design’, which they have...
The Department is developing the ELM scheme through a system of ‘co-design’, which they have now started to refer to as “co-creation”. This is working collaboratively with farmers and others to obtain continuous feedback and input as they iterate the … Read more
Government Response
The government commits to writing to the Committee by February 28, 2022, to explain how ELM plans are developed in partnership and the approach to operational readiness, responding to a separate recommendation (not provided in the input for this ID), not the committee's conclusion #14 about co-design effectiveness.
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17 Conclusion Not Addressed
Thirty-First Report - Environmenta…
As part of the new scheme, direct payments to farmers will reduce by 55% by...
As part of the new scheme, direct payments to farmers will reduce by 55% by 2024– 25 before being phased out completely. The NAO found that the Department expects the reduction in direct payments and introduction of its replacement arrangements … Read more
Government Response
The government response addresses PAC recommendation #3 (not provided in the input for this ID) regarding forecasts for land use, payments, and food production, not the committee's conclusion #17 about the impact of direct payment reductions on farmer profits.
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18 Conclusion Not Addressed
Thirty-First Report - Environmenta…
We asked the Department what farmers were feeling about the new scheme and the reduction...
We asked the Department what farmers were feeling about the new scheme and the reduction in direct payments. The Department recognised that while some saw the scheme as a “welcome opportunity to embrace a new future”, some feel very threatened … Read more
Government Response
The government response addresses PAC recommendation #6 (not provided in the input for this ID) about identifying further support for farmers' well-being and business challenges during the transition, not the committee's conclusion #18 regarding farmer anxiety and the distinction between scheme availability and sufficient business support.
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24 Conclusion Not Addressed
Thirty-First Report - Environmenta…
Although the Department has set out its high-level vision for ELM through six ‘outcomes’ set...
Although the Department has set out its high-level vision for ELM through six ‘outcomes’ set out in the 25-Year Environment Plan, it has not yet defined the specific objectives that it will be using to measure ELM’s success against this … Read more
Government Response
The government response addresses PAC recommendation #2 (not provided in the input for this ID) regarding developing and publishing clear metrics for ELM, not the committee's conclusion #24 regarding the lack of defined specific objectives for measuring ELM's success.
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25 Conclusion Not Addressed
Thirty-First Report - Environmenta…
The NAO recommended that the Department should urgently agree a clear, realistic and logical set...
The NAO recommended that the Department should urgently agree a clear, realistic and logical set of strategic objectives for ELM. We asked when we could expect these to be in place. The Department also acknowledged the importance of setting these … Read more
Government Response
The government's response reiterates its commitment to developing clear metrics and reporting annually on the delivery of targets within the Environmental Improvement Plan, but this does not specifically address the committee's conclusion regarding the urgent agreement of long-term strategic objectives for ELM.
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26 Conclusion Not Addressed
Thirty-First Report - Environmenta…
We told the Department that we were concerned about the lack of baseline data, and...
We told the Department that we were concerned about the lack of baseline data, and asked what data it will use to measure environmental improvements.70 In its written evidence, the Green Alliance emphasised the importance of being able to measure … Read more
Government Response
The government response addresses PAC recommendation #2 (not provided in the input for this ID) about developing and publishing clear metrics for ELM, not the committee's conclusion #26 regarding concerns about the lack of baseline data for measuring environmental improvements.
HM Treasury
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27 Conclusion Not Addressed
Thirty-First Report - Environmenta…
ELM and other agricultural policies are expected to contribute to government’s environmental objectives, such as...
ELM and other agricultural policies are expected to contribute to government’s environmental objectives, such as species abundance and the 25-Year Environment Plan. However, the RSPB highlighted that there is no overarching vision for agriculture in England or for how ELM … Read more
Government Response
The government response addresses PAC recommendation #2 (not provided in the input for this ID) about developing and publishing clear metrics for ELM, not the committee's conclusion #27 regarding the lack of an overarching vision for agriculture and ELM's contribution to wider environmental objectives.
HM Treasury
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30 Conclusion Not Addressed
Thirty-First Report - Environmenta…
The Department told us that it did not think that ELM’s focus on environmental management...
The Department told us that it did not think that ELM’s focus on environmental management would result in the UK importing more food. It explained that the scheme was also designed to boost productivity so that, despite taking land out … Read more
Government Response
The government response addresses PAC recommendation #3 (not provided in the input for this ID) about explaining farming program impacts on food production and productivity, not the committee's conclusion #30 regarding ELM's potential impact on UK food imports.
HM Treasury
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31 Conclusion Not Addressed
Thirty-First Report - Environmenta…
The Tenant Farmers Association told us that the introduction of the new scheme was a...
The Tenant Farmers Association told us that the introduction of the new scheme was a major concern for its members, and that it would be important that the scheme contained options to meet the specific needs of both tenant farmers … Read more
Government Response
The government response addresses PAC recommendation #7 (not provided in the input for this ID) about ELM complexity and feedback from the SFI pilot, not the committee's conclusion #31 regarding the specific needs and concerns of tenant and small farms.
HM Treasury
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Government Response AI assessment · 31 of 13 classified
Accepted 9
Acknowledged 6
Not Addressed 15
Rejected 1
Total 13 recs + 18 conclusions
Correspondence 4 letters
9 Mar 2022 Correspondence from Tamara Finkelstein, Permanent Secretary, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, re Response to Recommendation 4 of ELM PAC report, dated 1 March 2022
Parliament page
8 Feb 2022 Correspondence from Tamara Finkelstein, Permanent Secretary, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, re Update on long-term environment objectives, dated 9 December 2021
Parliament page
31 Jan 2022 Correspondence from Tamara Finkelstein, Permanent Secretary, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, re Response to Recommendation 7 of ELM PAC report, dated 27 January 2022
Parliament page
16 Nov 2021 Correspondence from Tamara Finkelstein, Permanent Secretary, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, re PAC: Follow-Up Response, dated 5 November 2021
Parliament page