Recommendation 6

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 by 53% over the last three years to only £22,800. Without direct payments, over a third of farms would have made a loss and so be unsustainable as businesses if nothing else changed, such as income from new schemes or rent reductions. The Department asserts that farmers will be able to offset the loss of income from direct payments through improvements in productivity, alternative income streams and support from its schemes. The Department recognises that the changes it is introducing is causing farmers anxiety. The mental health of farmers is one of the biggest challenges currently facing the sector. While the Department works with farming charities and is introducing the Farming Resilience Fund, the focus of this is on providing business support and advice to handle changes, rather than directly 8 Environmental Land Management Scheme supporting the mental health of farmers. The Rural Payments Agency, which is responsible for administering payments to farmers, has committed to developing a ‘here to help’ relationship with farmers, but this could be hindered by ongoing trust issues. Recommendation: The Department should identify what further support is needed to help farmers during the transition, including where farmers will face significant business challenges in the short term. The Department should particularly set out what it will do to support farmer’s well-being through the transition.