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Defra announces rate increase to reward nature-friendly farming

A guide to next steps for farmers following Defra's decision to stop further scheme applications

NFU president Tom Bradshaw to say there is ‘so much more to do' and there is still time for this Government to 'reset its relationship with farming and rural Britain'

New analysis shows hill farmers are only receiving 8% or £39m of the Government's new farming support scheme, the Sustainable Farming Incentive, despite the uplands occupying ‘around 15% of England's area'

Defra confirmed 76 grant items have been impacted. For farmers who have applied for a grant that is temporarily withdrawn, their application will be put on hold and will be contacted early next year

The NFU has expressed ‘extreme concern' to reports the scheme is now unlikely to open until mid-2025

The Farmers Guardian news team give their analysis of the Chancellor's Budget

Graham Redman, partner at agribusiness consultants The Andersons Centre said the business aspect of farming was pressing on the farming community ‘even more so than ever before', and he urged farmers to look beyond the headline figures on Government environmental schemes, which he said could look appealing but came with ‘obligations' and ‘costs'

CLA senior land use policy adviser Cameron Hughes said the range of Capital Grants available were 'particularly worth investigating'

TFA chief executive George Dunn said he believes farmers should be encouraged to consider what investment they need in their businesses over a three-year period and then use those plans to apply for a level of annual grant to support those goals