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Agriculture Act 2020

Contents

Overview of the Act

  1. The Agriculture Act underpins a new agricultural system based on the principle of public money for public goods.
  2. The Agriculture Act includes the following:
    • Powers to give financial assistance. Payments may encompass (but are not limited to) environmental protection, public access to the countryside and measures to safeguard livestock and plants.
    • Powers to give financial assistance to support productivity outcomes for agriculture, horticulture and forestry activities.
    • The ability to establish an enforcement and inspection regime for the new financial assistance payments including powers to set out terms and conditions of future financial assistance.
    • Provisions relating to the setting of multi-annual financial assistance plans and reporting mechanisms relating to the giving of financial assistance.
    • Measures to continue making payments to farmers during a transition period with powers to simplify and phase out Direct Payments and to delink these payments from the land. This includes setting the agricultural transition period for England.
    • The ability to modify elements of the retained CAP Regulations that set out the finance, control and reporting regime that applies across the CAP. These powers could, for example, allow the Government to change elements of the cross-compliance regime or administrative arrangements for the schemes that could continue for a time now the United Kingdom has left the European Union (EU). These powers also enable the repeal of EU aid schemes for fruit and vegetable Producer Organisations and additional powers to simplify the rules, while honouring existing rural development payment schemes entered into prior to EU Exit which extend beyond Exit day.
    • A provision on reporting to Parliament on UK food security.
    • Provisions to intervene in exceptional market conditions. These powers allow the Secretary of State to declare a period of exceptional market conditions and to give financial assistance to support farmers who have been affected. They also would enable the Secretary of State to use the additional public intervention and private storage aid powers in retained EU legislation.
    • Powers to collect and share data from those within or closely connected to the agri-food supply chain. The data collected and shared under these provisions will help farmers and producers increase productivity, help producers to manage risk and market volatility, and support animal and plant health and traceability.
    • Provisions for the Secretary of State to make regulations imposing obligations on first purchasers of agricultural products in relation to contracts with producers. This is aimed at protecting producers and consumers from unfair trading practices.
    • Provisions to create a domestic system of recognition of Producer Organisations to encourage collaboration among growers. These provisions will provide for exemptions from competition law for recognised organisations.
    • Provisions to modernise both the definition and enforcement of fertilisers, make amendments to agricultural tenancy legislation and make livestock traceability more effective.
    • Provision for the Secretary of State and/or Scottish and/or Welsh ministers to set up a scheme allowing levy bodies to redistribute red meat levy among themselves, in some circumstances.
    • Powers to make regulations setting and amending marketing standards for agricultural products and to make provision about organic products and the classification of carcasses by slaughterhouses.
    • Provisions requiring the Secretary of State to report to Parliament on whether, or to what extent, provisions in free trade agreements (FTAs) that relate to agricultural products are consistent with the maintenance of UK statutory levels of protection in relation to human, animal and plant life or health; animal welfare; and the environment.
    • Powers for the Secretary of State to legislate for the UK to comply with the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Agreement on Agriculture (AoA).
    • Provisions for Wales and Northern Ireland, where this Act will legislate for similar powers (in particular areas) adapted for the Welsh Government and Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs in Northern Ireland (DAERA) to be exercised by Ministers in those territories.

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