Look closer to home

SIR, – Your article ‘No LFASS guarantee’, rather weakly implies that both UK and Scottish Governments are responsible for funding this, but there is no question that this is a Scottish Government scheme, administered by Scottish Government, and 70% funded by Scottish Government.
The most likely and simplest outcome of any internal UK negotiations will be that the devolved administrations have an adjustment made to their current block grants, and therefore, any future funding decisions will be up to them.
The UK government will not want any internal division when the real negotiations begin with the EU and other countries in relation to trade deals.
So, it is likely that the relatively modest overall budget for agriculture will be accommodated. There is no point in saying that farmers only have certainty up to 2020.
The CAP has never given any certainty going forwards; it is always changing. It is not that long ago that everyone thought that 2013 was to be the last year of direct payments. No sooner has the last CAP been put in place than a mid term review has started. The EU ensures perpetual uncertainty, all the time.
The question for the Scottish Government therefore is, if an adjustment to the block grant is made to cover LFASS shortfall and suchlike schemes, will it then guarantee that this comes to farmers, or will it be like other Barnett consequentials received, in that money is often forwarded for one thing, but spent on another, or even worse, retained as a slush fund for use in whatever projects are politically important at any given time.
We should be pressurising the government closest to home first on these matters.