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UK to fund drought support for farmers with £65m package
The plan boosts the Sustainable Farming Incentive budget to £290m and allows some farmers to cut or graze earlier due to grass scarcity.
UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham has announced a £65m package aimed at helping drought hit farmers manage losses from extreme heat and low water availability, with the South East of England facing exceptionally hot weather.
According to the Guardian Business, most of the funding, £50m, will flow into the Sustainable Farming Incentive, bringing the total SFI budget to £290m, with additional money prioritized for areas of greatest need during the drought.
The remaining £15m will support building on farm reservoirs, intended to provide supplies during future dry summers. The government also plans to coordinate a cross government response through Cobra meetings that bring together actions on farming, water, and infrastructure.
The report says farmers participating in the SFI, who are typically barred from cutting or grazing parts of their land until later in the year, will be allowed to do so where grass is scarce without losing payments, and that the government is pursuing simpler arrangements for accessing water, including changes to the speed at which licences are granted.