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

To ask Her Majesty's Government, in respect of the five per cent of farmers and landowners who are still awaiting their payments for 2017 under the Basic Payments Scheme, how many own farm land of (1) under 250 acres, (2) 250 to 500 acres, (3) 500 to 1000 acres, and (4) over 1000 acres.

The Rural Payments Agency received over 86,000 applications for the Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) 2017. The window for making payments runs from December to June each scheme year. As of 13 March 2018, there were 3,678 claims still being processed for payment, as shown in the table below.

For those who remain unpaid at the end of March, bridging payments for 75% of the calculated value will be made to support farmers until their claim is processed for payment.

*Ownership of land is not a requirement for claiming under the BPS. Land farmed under a tenancy, lease or shared basis can be included in a claim. The figures given are based on size of claim, which may include land not owned by the claimant.