Welsh farms paid £158m in advance BPS payments
© Tim Scrivener Farmers in Wales will receive advance Basic payments worth 70% of their total value, the Welsh government has confirmed.
More than £158m will be shared across 15,600 farms in Wales when advance Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) payments are made today (12 October).
This means more than 96% of eligible farms will receive an advance BPS payment.
See also: Analysis: Challenges threaten future of Welsh farming
Any farm businesses not receiving payments now, but whose claim is validated before 15 December, will receive the advance payment.
Full and remaining balance BPS 2023 payments will be made from 15 December 2023, subject to full validation of claims.
This is the third consecutive year that Rural Payments Wales (RPW) has made automatic BPS advance payments in October.
‘Major boost’
NFU Cymru welcomed the announcement, saying it would provide a “major boost” to thousands of Welsh farmers struggling with cashflow.
“With Welsh farmers having been exposed to very significant inflationary pressures – the level of ‘aginflation’ is running around 40% higher in 2023 compared to 2020 – this news is welcomed, particularly when output prices have not kept pace with input prices, thus putting producer margins under pressure,” said NFU Cymru president Aled Jones.
But he added: “While I am extremely pleased to see this injection of funding into Welsh farming, we must not forget the small percentage of farmers who are not due to receive an advance payment tomorrow.”
Mr Jones said BPS payments are as important now as they have ever been, providing stability for Welsh farm businesses.
Around the regions
He warned the upcoming Sustainable Farming Scheme must maintain at least the same level of stability, for all farm sectors and types, as that now provided by the BPS.
In England, farmers with eligible BPS claims received advance payments worth 50% of their total claims from 1 August, with the balance set to be paid from 1 December 2023.
In Scotland, advance BPS payments and Greening advance payments started being paid last month.