A freedom of information request has revealed the amount of money recipients are paid under Scotland’s EU Common Agricultural Policy. Top of the list was SRUC with almost £3.4m which is largely paid for advisory services, farm management and farm relief services.

The Scottish Farmer:

The bulk of the top ten recipients is made up of large estates and land owners with many having undertaken significant tree planting and environmental schemes. The rules on capping means the Basic Area Payment are capped at a maximum amount around £500,000. The Buccleuch estate’s Queensberry Farming Limited was the second highest recipient with £1.8m followed by Guernsey based hotelier Mrs J C Hands also with £1.8m.

Andrew Lacey, Vice Principal, Commercial at SRUC, said: “The data presented by Scottish Government includes amounts that relate to both single farm payments as well as wider SRUC activities. It includes extensive knowledge exchange activity, including the cost of providing industry-wide support through the Farm Advisory Service (FAS). The main items of SRUC income comprises nearly £500,000 relating to SRUC’s farming activities as well as that from the operation of the Farm Advisory Service, a contract awarded to SRUC by the Scottish Government following a tender process. The Farm Advisory Service is an invaluable resource for farmers, crofters and other land managers throughout the country and in 2022 alone, farmers and land managers engaged with it nearly 2.5 million times through events and webinars, web views, advice line enquiries, videos, and podcasts.”

Previously RSPB was the second highest recipient of CAP moneys in 2021 but fell to tenth place in 2022.

A spokesperson for the charity said: “RSPB Scotland manages over 72,500 ha across 79 nature reserves, where we protect and restore important habitats and contribute to the conservation of the species that depend on them. We receive public money in relation to different elements of our activity. We are active farmers and receive direct payments in relation to our farming activity; four of our reserves are operated as in-hand farms. We also receive funding through other channels, such as the Agri-Environment and Climate Scheme and Forestry Grant Scheme, to help deliver nature conservation outcomes.

“The nature of this FOI request means the amounts provided by different support payments over the specified timescale as they relate to our operations in Scotland are not presented. Until recently the RSPB was treated as a cross-border holding, which means that payments relating to our farming operations in other parts of the UK were paid out through the Scottish Government’s paying agency. This will no longer be the case in future. Information about our farm and land management payments and those of all farmers in the UK has been publicly available for many years on the Defra website as this was an EU requirement.

“In addition to our own farming activities, we offer grazing lets at 30 of our reserves where livestock helps to create the right conditions for wildlife to thrive. We also have a team of dedicated farm advisors who work with farmers and crofters and agricultural agents across the country. These advisors work without fee with approximately 500-700 farmers and crofters per year and were involved in developing more than 200 Agri-Environment and Climate Scheme agreements for farmers and crofters in each of the last two years.”

Meanwhile at the other end of the scale 43 payments were made for amounts less than £10 with one payment of 1p being paid into a claimant’s account. The SF asked the Scottish Government about the administration fee for very small payments and if there were plans to phase out these payments in the future. A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “Our priority is to pay grants to farmers and crofters on time, as efficiently and effectively as possible. We do not operate a de minimis payment and therefore if a payment of any value is due to a business, it is made.

“Moving to a digital approach is vital for efficiency and we will continue to work closely with the sector as we develop the future support framework and make improvements to existing schemes.”