Chris Huhne

INCOMPETENT GOVERNMENT MUST STREAMLINE RURAL PAYMENTS – HUHNE

The Liberal Democrats described today’s National Audit Office’s report into single farm payments as a damning indictment of an incompetent Government.

The report into the farm payment fiasco reveals:

·New research showing the 1 in 5 farmers experienced stress/anxiety as a result and 1 in 20 considered leaving farming.

·Farmers paid up to £22.5 million in bank interest/arrangement fees

·There is “little prospect that [Government] will achieve much of the £164million efficiency savings” forecast by 2008-09

Liberal Democrat Shadow Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Secretary, Chris Huhne MP, said:

“This report is a scathing inditment which highlights just how much suffering this incompetent Government has caused.

“Worse, it signals enormous difficulties ahead, not just for farmers but potentially for all those receiving Defra funding.

“It’s now essential that deficits resulting from this project are covered by contingency funds and not by further cuts to vital environmental, rural and agricultural schemes.

“Ministers must also give urgent consideration to measures to speed up payments in future. They could start by ensuring the system is not clogged up by payments for as little as one penny.

“Despite this mess, Margaret Beckett was promoted for her troubles and the chief bureaucrat is still being paid a fat cat salary six months after being suspended.”