Future Farming fund criticised for 'inconsistencies'

The £21m fund was set up to help boost Scottish agriculture

The Scottish government has come under fire from some farmers and crofters over the allocation of grants for the Future Farming Investment Scheme (FFIS).

About 7,500 applications were submitted for the £21m fund which aimed to boost productivity, sustainability and efficiency within the agriculture sector.

However, about 3,500 applications did not meet the eligibility criteria with some farmers and politicians claiming the distribution of money was "unfair".

Minister for Agriculture and Connectivity Jim Fairlie said he understood some people would be disappointed and added that the Scottish government was already reviewing the scheme.

National Farmers Union Scotland president Andrew Connon said some farmers had been left disappointed

National Farmers Union Scotland (NFUS) president Andrew Connon said the organisation was pleased for members who had secured funding.

But he added that others were left disappointed despite submitting what they believed to be "strong and eligible" applications.

He said: "Initial feedback from our members has focused around perceived inconsistencies in how applications have been assessed and the low success rate among the ministerial priority groups.

"Clearly these issues need to be better understood in the days and weeks ahead and we will be seeking further discussions with the Scottish government to do so."

Mr Connon added that NFUS was working with the Scottish government on how the next round of FFIS could be shaped to meet its members' needs, and ensure lessons were taken forward.

'Borderline ridiculous'

Andrew Parker runs a small sheep farm near Lockerbie in Dumfries and Galloway.

He applied for a £5,000 grant to help improve the grassland and electric fencing on his farm.

Mr Parker said his agricultural advisor provided guidance with the application and he felt optimistic about his chances.

However, he was unsuccessful and said the current scheme was "unfair".

Mr Parker said: "It needs to be more consistent.

"It was borderline ridiculous in terms of what you could apply for - pretty much anything that didn't have an engine.

"One person can get a brand-new feeder wagon at £40,000 and somebody else trying to do what the grant was for, in terms of land improvements with better drystone walling, was declined. It doesn't make sense."

MP Torcuil Crichton claims crofters in the Western Isles missed out

Torcuil Crichton, Labour MP for Na h-Eileanan an Iar, claimed the Scottish government promised to focus the funding on supporting island communities.

But he said less than 1% had been allocated to applicants in the Western Isles, with many crofters missing out despite paying for professional help to assist with the application process.

Crichton said: "Only 18 small businesses in the Western Isles had support under this scheme - that's four in the whole of Lewis and 14 in the Uist."

The MP said parts of mainland Scotland had secured support.

He claimed: "It looks like most of the money has gone to the usual suspects, the wealthy farming community."

Crichton has written to Fairlie calling for a review of the scheme and asking for an explanation of the decision-making process.

Agriculture Minister Jim Fairlie said the Scottish government did support crofters

Fairlie refuted claims that the scheme was unfair and emphasised the Scottish government's support for crofters.

He said: "We have the Crofting Agricultural Grant Scheme, which is only for crofters, the Crofting House Grant Scheme, which again is only for crofters.

"We put a considerable amount of money into crofting every year.

"I was in shepherding and farming for a long, long time, so I understand the vagaries of this industry probably better than most."

Fairlie said the scheme was under review and lessons would be learned moving forward.

He said: "It may be that the next time we have to make it more difficult because we made this very broad - we made it very generous.

"We were giving up to 100% for applicants to apply for 100% of the funding.

"Perhaps that was too generous."

Meanwhile Scottish Conservative MSP Jamie Halcro Johnston said there were serious questions to be answered regarding how the scheme was operated.

He said: "The lack of detail from Jim Fairlie simply will not cut it. He must urgently come clean as to exactly why many applicants were rejected and why this whole process turned into a lucky dip for the thousands who applied."

Mr Fairlie said he was disappointed that the funding scheme appeared to have turned into a game of political football.