Written question asked by Lord Taylor of Holbeach (Conservative), in the House of Lords. It was answered by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Labour) on Monday, 27 October 2008.

Agriculture: Set-aside

Question: asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they are proceeding with plans to take farmland out of production and to compensate for the loss of set-aside's environmental benefits; and, if so, whether the land that they will designate will be that which was previously set-aside.

Answer: My right honourable friend the Secretary of State (Hilary Benn) recognised the importance of the potential loss of set-aside by commissioning additional environmental monitoring and asking Sir Don Curry to bring together key stakeholders to oversee this work and investigate mitigation options. Sir Don Curry's high-level set-aside group reported in July 2008 and the Secretary of State agreed that measures were needed as soon as practicable to mitigate the environmental impact of set-aside loss. The Secretary of State issued a statement on the next steps on 25 July. This included commissioning the Rural Payments Agency and Natural England to work up how the preferred option—managing a small percentage of their land primarily for environmental purposes—could be delivered in practice. Their report and the conclusion of the health check are not expected until late in the year when the Secretary of State will assess the next steps.

Secondary information