Thankfully the RPA has improved, especially with paying out and handling enquiries in a more personal way. However it is likely to take many years yet to return to the MAFF years when responsibility was given to staff to make decisions at a lower level, unhindered by a lack of training, little knowledge and the overarching bureaucracy of a “computer replaces human” approach. It is difficult not to take this opportunity to share one particular experience a client of ours had selling a small quantity of entitlements. He had sold many hectares of entitlements and had thought he had sold them all when he received a statement from the RPA saying he still had some left. Mystified he wrote to the RPA asking them to confirm this which they did and he then sold them. This was in 2010. In 2012 it appeared the RPA came across a copy of an RLE1 form transferring a similar number of entitlements, although with different block ID’s, to someone who already had this quantity of entitlements transferred to them by our client. The RPA therefore cancelled the entitlements transferred in 2010 as they felt the photocopy of the RLE1, which was dated earlier, took precedence, so that the other purchaser of entitlements ended up with double the amount they expected. The RPA are justifying making the 2010 transfer null and void on the basis that our client had an “intention” to transfer these entitlements to someone else. A worrying state of affairs. The lesson being always try and avoid the attentions of the RPA if at all possible.
Western Morning News – 19.12.12 – Entitlement market
Income from the Single Farm Payment may well be more critical in 2013 with reduced incomes in the arable sector, and the high prices for grain affecting the livestock sector. Wheat prices continuing to rise from £210 per tonne will only help those who did not have to sell early more than they would have done otherwise due to poor yields and quality. Next winter’s SPS cheque will be sorely needed. As expected there have now been public statements from Brussels that any new payment scheme will not be in place until 2015, and there is also now mention of the possibility of this being further delayed until 2016. This goes some way to remove one aspect of the current uncertainty, especially for purchasers thinking of investing in entitlements and needing to know how many years’ return they can expect. For the purchaser in England there is also better news in that one of the many ideas now under discussion is for Member States who have already moved to a flat rate payment being allowed to elect to “roll on” entitlements under the current SPS scheme to the next without a reallocation. There is still though plenty of uncertainty about the actual payment that can be expected for 2013 and beyond, with the EU budget indecision and the European Parliament waiting for this to be finalised before making clear how it will be spent on the CAP. The payment for 2012, just short of £85 per acre, may well form the basis for the 2013 payment, but it is still too early to be certain and of course there is always the fluctuation in the Euro/Pound value between now and next September. English entitlement trade remains sluggish compared with last year with vendors holding out for the average price achieved last year of £230 per hectare. Currently we are achieving sales at £210 per hectare. English SDA is moving at £180 per hectare and the SDA moorland market is trading at £35 per hectare. Non-SDA Naked Acres are running at £50-£60 per acre, with SDA expected to be around £40 per acre and SDA moorland at £4 per acre.