Rural Support Plan (RSP)

Introduction

Background to the Agriculture and Rural Communities (Scotland) Act 2024

When Scotland was part of the European Union (EU), agricultural support was provided under the EU Common Agricultural Policy (EU CAP).

After withdrawal from the EU on 31 January 2020, EU CAP no longer applied. To avoid any cliff edges in support, the Scottish Parliament enacted the Agriculture (Retained EU Law and Data) (Scotland) Act 2020 (the 2020 Act) to ensure CAP schemes continued to operate and could be simplified and improved where appropriate. The Scottish Ministers publicly committed to a period of stability and simplicity.

In alignment with EU principles and approaches, Scotland is developing an approach to farm and rural support that meets the needs of rural Scotland.

In particular, the Scottish Government announced its Vision for Agriculture, outlining the goal of transforming how the government will support farming and food production in Scotland to become a global leader in sustainable and regenerative agriculture.

The Scottish Parliament unanimously passed the Agriculture and Rural Communities (Scotland) Act 2024 (the ARC Act) to provide the powers to introduce new support, set policy objectives and ultimately deliver the Vision for Agriculture. It also delivers on the Scottish Government’s commitment to continue to support agriculture and rural communities.

To avoid any cliff edges in farm support, there will be a phased transition from legacy EU CAP support to the new framework of support. During the phased transition, changes to legacy EU CAP support will continue to be made using the powers of the 2020 Act whilst the ARC Act will be used for the introduction of new support.

The Rural Support Plan requirements

The ARC Act requires Scottish Ministers to prepare a Rural Support Plan.

The Rural Support Plan must set out:

1. the plan period

2. the Scottish Ministers’ strategic priorities for providing support

3. an overview of the support expected to be provided including:

• an indication of the total amount of support expected to be provided
• a description of the way support is to be structured
• an indication of how the total amount of support is to be divided between support schemes
• an indication of the time periods for support schemes
• measures that are intended to benefit small producers, tenant farmers and crofters, and
• any specific outcomes that the Scottish Ministers are seeking to achieve

4. a description of each support scheme in operation/ expected to come into operation, and

5. how the impact of each support scheme will be monitored

The Rural Support Plan must be laid before the Scottish Parliament and published.

The Rural Support Plan overview

2. Plan Period

This details the period covered by this version of the Rural Support Plan.

3. Strategic Outcomes and Strategic Priorities

This details Scottish Ministers’ strategic outcomes and strategic priorities for providing support. The main objectives are based on Scottish Government’s Vision for Agriculture. Support for Scottish Agriculture is structured around the achieving of these outcomes and, in turn, delivery of the Vision.

4. Overview of Support

This provides an overview of the support expected to be provided during the plan period including:

a. Support structure

This describes the way support is to be structured. This initial Rural Support Plan introduces the use of the four-tier framework.

b. Support schemes

This outlines the support schemes in operation/ expected to come into operation during the plan period including a description, eligibility, time periods and the outcomes each scheme is looking to achieve.

c. Amount of support

This provides an indication of the total budget allocated and how this will be divided between support schemes.

d. Agricultural Reform Route Map

This is Scottish Government’s proposed timeline for reform of agricultural support. This initial Rural Support Plan sets out the initial phase of the transition from legacy EU CAP to the new Scottish four-tier framework.

5. Monitoring and Evaluation

This details how support schemes and the Rural Support Plan will be monitored and evaluated.

6. Matters Considered

This details how Scottish Ministers have had regard to the matters listed in section 3 of the ARC Act when preparing this Rural Support Plan.

7. Approach to Reform and the Rural Support Plan

This outlines Scottish Government’s approach to reform and the Rural Support Plan.