Defra has recently amended the domestic legislation which covers cross compliance. The principal reason for changing the regulation was to ensure that exemptions were in place to allow regular cutting for farmers who wished to establish certain environmental management options such as those championed by the Campaign for the Farmed Environment (CFE). The amended legislation permits an exemption from the requirement to not cut more than 50% of a farmer’s agricultural land not in agricultural production under Good Agricultural and Environmental Condition (GAEC) 12.
 
RPA has updated its cross compliance literature in light of the change.  The GAEC 12 page in The Guide to Cross Compliance in England has been amended accordingly.

The e-version of The Guide to Cross Compliance in England contains the most up to date information inclusive of this amendment to GAEC 12. This document can be accessed by following the cross compliance link Farmer Guidance > Guide to Cross Compliance in England on RPA’s website www.rpa.gov.uk.

RPA will send a hard copy of this GAEC 12 page to all farmers in England later this year along with other pages that will be updated for 2011. In the meantime, hard copies are available from our Customer Service Centre on 0845 603 7777.