The Rural Payments Agency (RPA) Business Plan 2012/13 was published last week and the chief executive officer Mark Grimshaw said: “Thanks to the hard work of our people and the support of our industry partners and Defra, I believe we have now turned a corner on our way to becoming a trusted, efficient and effective organisation.
“Farmers and food producers rely on RPA support to make their businesses more competitive and, thereby, our rural communities more sustainable. For their sakes, there will be no let-up in our drive to improve performance for our customers and the tax-payer in 2012/13.”
So, at last the RPA seems to have made some substantive progress in its performance, although this is not a moment too soon following the debacle of the introduction of the Single Payment Scheme in 2005, the aftermath of which is still haunting some farmers.
For instance I am aware of applicants who still think they are owed money back to 2006 and so it must be welcomed that the RPA achieved their best performance to date in 2011 and are promising to do better next year.
Indeed their pledge is to pay 91 percent of claimants and 84 percent of value for the 2012 scheme year by the end of December 2012 but there is no doubt their next challenge will be to ensure that when the CAP is next reformed in the next couple of years they do not make the same hash of it that they achieved last time.
This was reiterated by the chief executive of the Tenant Farmer’s Association, George Dunn who said: "The performance of the Rural Payments Agency continues to improve under the leadership of its chief executive, Mark Grimshaw.
“The TFA is pleased to see that the RPA has been set tougher targets for the coming year particularly in relation to payments under the 2012 Single Payment Scheme. The big challenge ahead for the RPA will be implementation of whatever is eventually agreed within the next CAP reform.
“The TFA is in on-going discussion with the RPA and its parent department, DEFRA to ensure that the mistakes made with the implementation of the last CAP reform are not repeated this time round."
To be fair to the RPA the manner in which the scheme was introduced in England by our government was particularly complicated. So, I hope that when the next reforms are agreed at a European level, we do not decide to overcomplicate the regulations at a domestic level so as to give the RPA a fighting chance of making up for their mistakes in the past which cost both farmers and the UK tax payer millions of pounds.
James Stephen MRICS FAAV
Partner
Rural Practice Chartered Surveyor, Wells
T: 01749 683381
E: james.stephen@carterjonas.co.uk
“Farmers and food producers rely on RPA support to make their businesses more competitive and, thereby, our rural communities more sustainable. For their sakes, there will be no let-up in our drive to improve performance for our customers and the tax-payer in 2012/13.”
So, at last the RPA seems to have made some substantive progress in its performance, although this is not a moment too soon following the debacle of the introduction of the Single Payment Scheme in 2005, the aftermath of which is still haunting some farmers.
For instance I am aware of applicants who still think they are owed money back to 2006 and so it must be welcomed that the RPA achieved their best performance to date in 2011 and are promising to do better next year.
Indeed their pledge is to pay 91 percent of claimants and 84 percent of value for the 2012 scheme year by the end of December 2012 but there is no doubt their next challenge will be to ensure that when the CAP is next reformed in the next couple of years they do not make the same hash of it that they achieved last time.
This was reiterated by the chief executive of the Tenant Farmer’s Association, George Dunn who said: "The performance of the Rural Payments Agency continues to improve under the leadership of its chief executive, Mark Grimshaw.
“The TFA is pleased to see that the RPA has been set tougher targets for the coming year particularly in relation to payments under the 2012 Single Payment Scheme. The big challenge ahead for the RPA will be implementation of whatever is eventually agreed within the next CAP reform.
“The TFA is in on-going discussion with the RPA and its parent department, DEFRA to ensure that the mistakes made with the implementation of the last CAP reform are not repeated this time round."
To be fair to the RPA the manner in which the scheme was introduced in England by our government was particularly complicated. So, I hope that when the next reforms are agreed at a European level, we do not decide to overcomplicate the regulations at a domestic level so as to give the RPA a fighting chance of making up for their mistakes in the past which cost both farmers and the UK tax payer millions of pounds.
James Stephen MRICS FAAV
Partner
Rural Practice Chartered Surveyor, Wells
T: 01749 683381
E: james.stephen@carterjonas.co.uk
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