My Lords, I have heard it said many times by Ministers that the total amount of agricultural subsidy to be paid in 2021 will be no lower than the amount to be paid in the current year. I look forward to hearing the Minister’s confirmation of this. However, I am not sure that the noble Lord, Lord Grantchester, is quite right in his drafting of Amendment 105, because “the total amount provided” under Section 1 in 2020 is obviously zero. I think that what the noble Lord wanted to say was that the amount to be paid is no less than the total amount, including amounts provided under the direct payment scheme and other existing schemes.
I am not sure that it is fair to limit the proportion of financial support spent on administration or consultancy. A farmer might spend a high proportion on consultancy in one year and then nothing for several years. Different farmers categorise spending on administration in different ways, and if a farmer spends all his financial support on unnecessary administration, it follows that he will not be achieving the approved purposes and will not therefore qualify to continue to receive support. I am therefore unable to support Amendments 107 and 123, but I would support Amendment 112, permitting carry- over of unspent funds—but probably only to the next year, which I think is reasonable. Amendment 128,
proposed by my noble friend Lady Rock, achieves the same purpose, although, again, I suggest limiting the right to carry over to the following year only.
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The noble Baroness, Lady Jones of Whitchurch, in Amendment 129, seeks to require the Secretary of State to have regard for the current environmental improvement plan in setting out his strategic priorities. I should have thought that this would be the case whether or not it is included in the Bill.
I cannot support the amendment by the noble Earl, Lord Devon, to extend planned periods to seven years, because five years is quite far enough ahead to expect the Secretary of State to plan for these purposes. In addition, I do not think the reason given by the noble Earl is valid. Even if the Fixed-term Parliaments Act is not repealed, as I hope it will be, the noble Earl must be aware that general elections have not taken place regularly every five years.
My noble friend Lord Lucas seeks to require a new plan to be published a full two years before an existing plan expires. He is surely right to suggest that the new plan should not be published until the day before the old plan expires. But would the Minister not agree that publication one year before the old plan expires might be a sensible compromise? This would not only allow Parliament two months to debate the new plan, as proposed by the noble Earl, Lord Devon, in Amendment 133, but would allow farmers to have a full year to adjust their business models to match the new strategy.
Amendment 137, tabled by my noble friend Lady McIntosh, seeks to widen the purposes of financial assistance under the scheme in ways that would damage its focus and clarity. I could not support it, although I respect my noble friend’s tireless work in protecting the environment.
The noble Lord, Lord Addington, is surely right in asking for more information about how much financial support will be given for each of the approved purposes. Farmers need to know this now so that they can plan. The amendment by the noble Lord may be too prescriptive, but I would like to ask the Minister whether he can inform the House how much information on this the Government intend to provide, and—importantly—when.
I cannot see that the purpose of Amendment 139, in the name of the noble Lord, Lord Krebs, is not already adequately covered in the Bill.
Amendment 232, tabled by the noble Baroness, Lady Bennett of Manor Castle, would be a tough biannual burden on the Secretary of State, the benefits of which, some might say, would not justify it. Besides, it is strongly weighted towards the priorities of the noble Baroness, rather than those of the wider farming community and the consumer.