MPs criticise Natural England plans for further destocking on Dartmoor

Natural England has come under fire from MPs for trying to push through controversial plans to restrict grazing livestock on Dartmoor without any consultation with farmers.

Devon Conservative MP Geoffrey Cox said the government agency wrote to all the commoners’ associations on Dartmoor in February, representing some 900 farmers, some of whom were due five-year extensions to their Higher Level Stewardship (HLS) agreements.

Those letters said farmers would have to remove their livestock entirely from the moors during winter if they wished to extend their HLS agreements, Sir Geoffrey told a Westminster Hall debate this week.

See also: Natural England’s protected landscapes plans risk farmers’ livelihoods

Natural England then sent another letter to one association saying it would have to reduce its summer grazing by 80%, he added, which “exploded a metaphorical bomb” in the small and fragile communities the moorland hosts.

Sir Geoffrey said the letters were written without consultation or warning, adding that it was “an extremely unfortunate step for the regulator to have taken”.

He said there had been a “steady and gradual breakdown in trust and confidence” between Natural England and farming communities on Dartmoor.

But he insisted Natural England’s statutory objectives could only be achieved by working in partnership with those who live and work in the area.

Conservative MP for Totnes and South Devon Anthony Mangnall said livestock numbers have been successively reduced on Dartmoor, but the environmental issues had not improved and there was “little information to show farmers were to blame”.

Mr Mangnall accused Natural England of using sites of special scientific interest (SSSIs) as a reason to attempt to force farmers out of business by making their activities unviable.

“If we lose our Dartmoor farmers, they will not come back. We will find ourselves at odds, and we will see a poorer landscape as a result,” he warned.

Independent review

Defra farm minister Mark Spencer agreed to the Devon MPs’ calls for an independent inquiry into the management of Dartmoor and its “complex environment” and the proper balancing of public interests.

The MPs and commoners are seeking government support for a “one plus four” model, which would see HLS agreements on Dartmoor rolled over for one year while an independent review is held, followed by four years based on the findings of the review.

Farmers on Dartmoor say they have been grazing under Natural England’s environmental stewardship agreements for more than 20 years. This has already resulted in the reduction of about 80% of stock from the moors.

Dartmoor farmer Helen Radmore told Farmers Weekly: “Why would Natural England follow a failed policy and reduce more stock when a generation of destocking has not improved the environmental diversity of the commons?”