RPA 2010 payment targets may not be met

Agriculture minister Jim Paice has admitted that the Rural Payments Agency faces a significant challenge in meeting its 2010 single payment scheme targets.

The additional workload created by the update last year to the Rural Land Register and reduced staff numbers were to blame, he told Parliament on Wednesday (1 December).

Announcing the start of SPS payments to farmers, Mr Paice predicted that 80,000 claimants would receive more than £1bn in the first few days of the month. “This represents more than 75% of claimants,” he said.

But further progress towards the Agency’s 2010 SPS payment targets – to pay 85% of eligible claimants by the end of December and 95% of the value of SPS payments by the end of March 2011 – represented “a significant challenge”.

Progress was being monitored by the RPA Oversight Board, which Mr Paice chaired. “Farmers may be assured that outstanding payments will be made as individual claims are verified,” he said.

“But that will not mean cutting corners: I am determined to bring a renewed focus on accuracy to the administration of the scheme so that legacy issues are addressed once and for all and the agency is then able to deliver a better quality of service to farmers in the medium term.”

The RPA will write to farmers who are unlikely to receive payment during December.