Farmers in England who want to leave the industry will now be able to apply for the Lump Sum Exit Scheme, which will provide payment and enable them to exit the sector in a managed way.
In return, farmers will be expected to either rent or sell their land or surrender their tenancy in order to create opportunities for new entrants and farmers wishing to expand their businesses.
The scheme will run from the 12th of April until the 30th of September and follows a public consultation. It builds on evidence that some farmers would like to retire or leave the industry but have found it difficult to do so for financial reasons.
Exit payments will be based on the average direct payments made to the farmer from 2019 to 2021 under the Basic Payment Scheme. This reference figure will be capped at £42,000 and multiplied by 2.35 for a maximum lump sum of around £100,000.
Environment Secretary George Eustice said: “The decision to retire or exit the industry can be extremely difficult and is frequently postponed. The purpose of the Lump Sum Exit Scheme is to assist farmers who want to exit the industry to do so in a planned way that provides them with the means to make a meaningful choice about their future. The Scheme will also free up land for new entrants to farming, and we will be saying more about our new entrants scheme shortly.”
