The Department has committed to making the first payments under SFI22 by Christmas 2022. Despite the tight timescales and continuing uncertainty around the launch of SFI22 next year, the stakeholders we heard from were divided on whether a delay to the roll-out and to the reduction in direct payments was necessary. The National Farmers’ Union recommended a delay to ensure that the scheme is ready to work for both farmers and the environment. In its written evidence it said: “The NFU does not believe that Defra should press ahead with its current timetable to transition when its new agriculture support schemes simply aren’t ready. Direct payments should only be phased out when there are fully funded accessible new schemes ready for farmers to apply for.”20 The Confederation of Forest Industries similarly told us that a slight delay would be helpful in ensuring that necessary consultations about change and transformation in the way land is used in the UK were complete.21