The Scottish government has given 'categorical assurance' that £33m deferred from the agricultural budget last year will be returned this year.
In the Emergency Budget Review (EBR) in 2022, £33m of funding awarded to the fair allocation of agricultural support in the UK was deferred due to the cost-of-living crisis.
The then-Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Finance, John Swinney, publicly confirmed that the deferred budget would be returned to the sector, but no timeline was given.
But in a recent meeting with NFU Scotland, the current the Deputy First Minister, Shona Robison, gave 'categorical assurance' that the deferred budget would be returned to the sector this year.
In terms of allocating that budget, the union said it would now discuss the matter with the Cabinet secretary for Rural Affairs, Mairi Gougeon.
In the union's recent intentions survey conducted in January, almost two-thirds of farmers identified uncertainty around future agri policy and funding as the most significant threat to their businesses.
Commenting on the new commitment, NFU Scotland President Martin Kennedy said the fund would be used "to secure the future of farming and crofting".
He said: "We welcomed the opportunity to discuss with the Deputy First Minister how we believe Scottish government can support that ambition.
“As an important part of that wider discussion on funding, we were given categorical assurance that all of the £33m uncommitted Bew funding will be returned to the agriculture portfolio.
“We now look forward to discussions with the Mairi Gougeon and her team on the need to utilise it to best effect, particularly in terms of driving much needed investment and to build resilience across all agricultural sectors.”
Shona Robison said that by returning this £33 million to the agricultural budget, work could be enhanced to grow the rural economy and support communities.
“I was pleased to meet NFUS to discuss the central importance of Scotland’s farmers and crofters, and to reiterate the Scottish Government’s continued commitment to supporting them.
"This support will help our farmers and crofters transition to global leadership in sustainable and regenerative farming as we produce more of our own food locally.”
