Farmers across West Northumberland are at the heart of our rural economy, including tenant farmers, not least given the essential role they play as a route into farming.
Their voices must be heard, which is why, following the comprehensive review of tenanted farming chaired by Baroness Rock, the Government has made some key announcements:
- creating a new farm tenancy forum to put a more formal engagement and feedback structure in place between DEFRA and the tenanted sector will embed tenant farmers further in policymaking, improve communication with the tenanted sector and help make Government schemes as accessible as possible.
- developing a new Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors and industry-led code of practice on expected standards of socially responsible behaviour for all parties involved in agricultural tenancy agreements.
- launching a call for evidence this summer on a proposed ‘tenant farming commissioner’ or ombudsman.
These are positive steps, building on previous work, such as making it easier for tenants to participate in the sustainable farming incentive by offering 3-year agreements, making all productivity grants accessible to tenant farmers, including the £168m of investment launching across 2023, and around half of the 22 long-term, high-ambition landscape recovery projects selected in the first round involving tenants working with other farmers and land managers.
