Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the average waiting time is for applicants between between being invited to apply online by the Rural Payments Agency to secure a Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier agreement and securing a signed agreement.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The scheme is in an early stage “private beta” rollout where delivery times would be expected to be longer than normal. So far, the average time from invitation to apply to the Rural Payments Agency offering an agreement to the customer is around 90 daysfor what are 10-year agreements.

The length of time taken to reach agreement includes customer action and can vary considerably depending on a number of factors, including the complexity, specialist advice, site assessment, and time taken to agree management options.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier agreements have been accepted since September 2025; and how many farmers have been invited to apply for Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier since September 2025.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Since September 2025, the Rural Payments Agency (RPA) has invited 903 farmers to apply for a Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier (CSHT) agreement. Over the same period the number of CSHT agreements that have been accepted is 431.

The RPA continues to streamline the application process and ensure that agreements are progressed as efficiently as possible.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether everyone with a legacy Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier agreement that expired on 30 December 2025 secured a new Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier agreement.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The new Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier (CSHT) service opened for applications in September 2025 for groups who had been invited to apply. This included farmers land managers with existing Higher Tier agreements due to expire in December 2025.

Not all agreement holders will have secured a new Higher Tier agreement: This is reflected by a number of factors including if the applicant has engaged in the application process taking into account their individual requirements, whether a suitable new agreement proposal can be offered and the impact of site-specific environmental requirements and assessments.

Found: Representations from Members The following Members made oral representations: Sam Rushworth: International