1. Cross Compliance Implementation & Control in England
James Jansen
Farming for the Future Programme
Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs
July 2007 1

2. DEFRA Executive agencies ‘NDPBs’ (Agriculture & Environment Policy) 2
Implementation / “Control”
Policy
Executive agencies
Rural Payments Agency
Animal Health Agency
Veterinary Medicines Agency
Etc…
‘NDPBs’
Environment Agency
Natural England
National Park Authorities
Etc… 2

3. Importance of agriculture and place of cross compliance
Agricultural activities cover c.¾ of the land area of the UK – 18.4m Ha
Agriculture has major environmental impacts e.g.
60% N, & 40% P entering English watercourses
2.2m tonnes of top soil lost per year in England & Wales
Pesticides – removal from drinking water costs c.£78m per year
Cross compliance is key mechanism to deliver basic standards of environmental protection – in return for £1.5bn subsidy 3

4. Cross Compliance in England
Statutory Management Requirements
19 standards
Good Agricultural & Environmental Condition
17 standards
Soil management and protection (4)
Maintenance of habitats & landscape features (13)
Permanent Pasture
All the SMRs and over half of GAECs re-enforce
existing English legislation 4

5. Hedge & watercourse protection –
2 metre protection zones next to hedges & watercourses

6. Overgrazing and unsuitable supplementary feeding controls

7. Cross Compliance Design in England
Internal working groups with Defra agencies – soils, biodiversity, set-aside & inspection/controls
Workshop with stakeholders prior to recommendations to Ministers – influential on approach to soils
12-week consultation in 2004
GAECs developed to tackle key environmental externalities;
SMRs assessed for clarity and readability.
Continuing dialogue with stakeholders e.g. farmer “roundtables”
Pilot inspection process should be considered
Regulatory Impact Assessment used to identify costs and benefits of standards 7

8. Support to Farmers Cross Compliance Handbook for England Incorporates:
Detailed requirements
Legal Information
Inspection and Enforcement Information 8

9. Support to Farmers 2 Cross Compliance Handbook for England
Moving towards a simpler, streamlined approach for ‘08:
Loose leaf
Farmers can order booklet to suit their needs
Farming activities linked to requirements
Summaries of standards
Clear “must” / “must not” format
Signposting of supplementary information 9

10. Support to Farmers 3 Additional guidance booklets explain cross
compliance objectives and help farmers deliver
Habitats / Soils Guidance
Explanations of GAECs
Best practice
How to comply
Easy reference
Popular with farmers 10

11. Support to Farmers 4 Momenta advice programme (GAECs & SMRs) 11
(Key part of FAS)
Website: 97,000+ visits in first two years
Helpline: 11,000+ calls in first two years
Events: 23,000+ attended in first two years
e.g. farm walks, workshops
1-to-1 advice: 34,000+ receiving advice in first two years
In addition:
National Press Attending Shows
Mail shots Text messaging
Surveys show awareness of cross compliance issues raised from 47% in 2004 to 97% in 2005 11

12. Cross Compliance Controls
4 Competent Control Authorities (CCAs) in
England
Rural Payments Agency - GAECs; SMRs 1-9,11-12
Animal Health Agency - SMRs 13-18
Veterinary Medicines - SMR 10
Environment Agency - SMRs 2-4 12

13. CCA Co-ordination CCA Co-ordination Body
Rural
Payments
Agency
Veterinary
Medicines
Animal Health
Envt.
Agency
Initially managed by Defra, now RPA 13

14. Risk Assessment Each CCA undertakes own risk assessment e.g.
RPA Selection of 1% of Farmers for Inspection:
68% risk assessed
12% referrals
20% random
Random element provides a baseline for non compliance rates among the whole population
17 teams/350 inspectors assess compliance 14

15. Emerging Impact of Cross Compliance
Indications that:
40% of farmers have changed their practices to meet cross compliance;
34% have noted environmental or other benefits, such as increased wildlife and reduced runoff from fields;
A monitoring and evaluation programme is being
developed to explore these further. 15

16. Cross Compliance Evolution
Continuing to adapt the way we interact with
farmers to improve compliance and reduce
burdens:
Farmer workshops to identify concerns/needs;
Simplifying the Handbook to identify clear “you must” / “you must not” requirements;
Signposting of additional information;
Better targeting advice to improve compliance (trial use of workshops to improve performance);
Providing information on the inspection process. 16

17. Future Challenges
Early stage of the journey – aim to move from detailed set standards towards outputs/outcomes (e.g. Soil Protection Review) and empowering farmers to deliver
Aspiration to reduce number of GAEC standards
Cross compliance a key tool to recognise emerging challenges such as the Water Framework Directive, and strengthen the industry to prepare
Greater integration with other policy measures e.g. set-aside, Pillar II 17

18. Key Points
Talk to farmers and stakeholders so they understand process from an early stage;
Trial the inspection process to provide a “reality-check”;
Providing information/advice is challenging, but key to changing behaviour;
An opportunity to deliver environmental benefits and help farmers prepare for future challenges 18

19. Thank you
Newcastle University November 2003