Single Payment Scheme
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The Single Payment Scheme (or Single Farm Payment) is a grant scheme introduced in 2005/2006 by the EU to replace the existing Headage/Premia Schemes (Special Beef/Suckler Cow/Ewe Premium/Area Aid etc.).
The main purpose of the SPS scheme is to 'decouple' grant payments from production. This is in response to criticism from other WTO (mainly the US), that the EU is unfairly subsidising it's farmers and providing an unfair competitive advantage. With the SPS the farmer gets the same grant regardless of production. Therefore any production s/he does carry out is based purely on market driven forces and not on production based grants. However to gain funds from the SPS the Farmer has to cross comply - that is to farm in an environmentally friendly way, with careful use of pesticides. He also has to set aside (not farm) 8% of his productive land annually, in addition two metres on the perimeter of each fields must be left uncropped to become overgrown. Research has proven this will encourage a spread of ergot in crops which can be potentially damaging to human life.
Another stated goal at the outset was to simplify the existing process including applications. The reality appears to be however that the SPS is much more complicated than what went before. This is typical of EU schemes which start out with simple objectives but by the time the detail is worked out are extremely complex.
Implementation of the payments in England has been impaired by problems at the Rural Payments Agency.
