The current proposals for a new Nutrients Action Programme (NAP) will need to change over the coming months, Agriculture Minister Andrew Muir has acknowledged.
Strong opposition from other political parties during a debate at Stormont on Tuesday made it clear that the current NAP proposals will not be approved by the NI Executive.
Then on Wednesday, seven agri food groups jointly started legal proceedings calling for “the immediate withdrawal” of the public consultation on NAP.
Speaking to the Irish Farmers Journal before the legal proceedings were initiated, Minister Muir pointed out that the measures set out in the current consultation are “draft proposals”.
“It is highly unlikely that what I will bring forward in terms of final proposals are going to be what was set out within the consultation,” the Alliance MLA said.
While he faces strong opposition on one side from the agri food industry and most political parties, on the other hand there is the threat of legal action if the new measures do not go far enough to address water quality.
Last week, the Office of Environmental Protection (OEP) issued a letter to Minister Muir stating that DAERA has obligations under high level environmental laws, such as the habitats and water framework directives.
“Where we suspect a failure to comply with environmental law, the OEP will consider enforcement action,” the letter states.
The environmental watchdog also suggest the proposed NAP measures might not go far enough. For example, the OEP “question the sufficiency” of the proposal for intensive farms to have an annual phosphorus balance of 8kg/hectare by 2029.
So how will the minister be able to find a middle ground that pleases everyone and keeps his department out of the courts?
“I have got a challenge in that I need to make sure we are meeting our legal obligations to improve water quality, but I also want to find solutions that are workable at farm level, and that’s what I want to bring to the NI Executive,” Minister Muir said.
He maintained that the current public consultation is about “genuine engagement” and “giving people an opportunity to have their say” on the new NAP.
He also reiterated that a “small stakeholder group” made up of representatives from agri food and environmental groups will be set up to “go through the responses to the consultation and to help inform decisions”.
“I hope people take their seats at that table,” Minister Muir said.
Minister hits back at criticism of record
Agriculture Minister Andrew Muir has rejected criticism from some politicians and farmers that he is not concerned about the issues facing the NI farming industry.
“There’s an awful lot happening within farming. I get it and I hear it,” he said. “The easiest thing for me to do as minister would be to ignore these issues, to talk around them, and to give people false hope. What I’m determined to do is chart a course through it.”
In an interview with the Irish Farmers Journal, Minister Muir defended his record since taking office at DAERA in February 2024.
Budget
In particular, he pointed out that he secured the same budget for farm support schemes in NI after the funding mechanism was changed by the UK government last Autumn.
“I was the only minister in the UK that got that funding ring fenced locally in this and future financial years,” he said.
He pointed to a new £12m budget for a “just transition fund for agriculture” and a proposed new capital grant scheme which will help farmers buy low emission slurry spreading equipment.
“We’ve got a scheme developed. I await the money from the finance minister. MLAs have talked an awful lot about the need to support farmers. They need to put their money where their mouth is and support me in the upcoming budget,” said Minister Muir.
Wastewater
The Alliance politician rejected the suggestion that farmers were being asked to take the blame for water quality, while the likes of wastewater treatment works are largely ignored.
Minister Muir said he is pressing for changes to rules, known as SORPI arrangements, which effectively allows overspills of untreated sewage to flow into waterways.
“I want to see an end to that. I do not think it’s fair to farmers where NI Water gets a separate regime compared to farming. Previous environment ministers have ignored this issue,” he said.
The North Down MLA also hit out at “keyboard warriors” who have posted sinister comments on social media about himself and DAERA officials. “They are a disgrace. They do not reflect the farming community in NI,” he said.
Agriculture Minister Andrew Muir.
Legal threat due to 'serious flaws' with NAP
Solicitors acting on behalf of seven agri food organisations in NI have written to Agriculture Minister Andrew Muir calling on him to withdraw the current NAP consultation.
The letter identifies “several serious procedural flaws” with the public consultation exercise on NAP change, including:
Conflicting and unclear information around what has been proposed. Failure to properly engage with farmers and stakeholders when developing the policy. Lack of access to supporting data. Technical issues at public consultation events. The absence of an economic impact assessment.The farm and food organisations argue the consultation process should be re-run following “proper engagement” with the sector.
“This is about getting the foundations right. You can’t build effective regulation on confused proposals and missing evidence,” Ulster Farmers’ Union president William Irvine said.
The letter gives Minister Muir seven days to respond. If that isn’t forthcoming, the various organisations reserve the right to issue High Court legal proceedings.
MLAs support re-run of NAP consultation
A clear majority of MLAs at Stormont supported a non-binding motion on Tuesday which called on Minister Muir to “immediately withdraw” the current NAP consultation.
In the opening speech proposing the motion, the DUP’s Michelle McIlveen said the current NAP consultation was “flawed” and “dangerously disconnected” from the reality of farming.
“Some farmers would need to double the land that they currently use for slurry spreading. That land is simply not available. The only alternative is reducing livestock numbers,” she said.
“You can disagree with the NAP proposals without being anti-environment, and you can seek a more pragmatic way forward while still caring about the quality of our water,” she added.
Various Sinn Féin MLAs raised concerns about the potential impact on upland farmers, particularly with the NAP proposal to ban splash plate slurry spreading by 2030.
Concerns
Declan McAleer said he had “serious concerns” about the consultation process, including the lack of economic and equality impact assessments, as well as “inconsistency” between the consultation and draft regulations.
Ulster Unionist MLA Robbie Butler said the consultation process should start again with a new “co-designed, evidence-led approach” which involves farming and environmental groups.
Eóin Tennyson from Alliance took a different view and suggested in his speech that the agri food sector had too much influence on NAP policies in the past.
“Perhaps the DUP and Sinn Féin are uncomfortable with a Minister who no longer allows government policy to be written by only one select group of stakeholders,” he said.
It was unclear how the SDLP would vote, but in the end the party’s MLAs opposed the motion.
“The consultation is a consultation. I am not endorsing everything that is in the consultation, nor am I predetermining an outcome,” said the SDLP’s Matthew O’Toole.
The current proposals for a new Nutrients Action Programme (NAP) will need to change over the coming months, Agriculture Minister Andrew Muir has acknowledged.
Strong opposition from other political parties during a debate at Stormont on Tuesday made it clear that the current NAP proposals will not be approved by the NI Executive.
Then on Wednesday, seven agri food groups jointly started legal proceedings calling for “the immediate withdrawal” of the public consultation on NAP.
Speaking to the Irish Farmers Journal before the legal proceedings were initiated, Minister Muir pointed out that the measures set out in the current consultation are “draft proposals”.
“It is highly unlikely that what I will bring forward in terms of final proposals are going to be what was set out within the consultation,” the Alliance MLA said.
While he faces strong opposition on one side from the agri food industry and most political parties, on the other hand there is the threat of legal action if the new measures do not go far enough to address water quality.
Last week, the Office of Environmental Protection (OEP) issued a letter to Minister Muir stating that DAERA has obligations under high level environmental laws, such as the habitats and water framework directives.
“Where we suspect a failure to comply with environmental law, the OEP will consider enforcement action,” the letter states.
The environmental watchdog also suggest the proposed NAP measures might not go far enough. For example, the OEP “question the sufficiency” of the proposal for intensive farms to have an annual phosphorus balance of 8kg/hectare by 2029.
So how will the minister be able to find a middle ground that pleases everyone and keeps his department out of the courts?
“I have got a challenge in that I need to make sure we are meeting our legal obligations to improve water quality, but I also want to find solutions that are workable at farm level, and that’s what I want to bring to the NI Executive,” Minister Muir said.
He maintained that the current public consultation is about “genuine engagement” and “giving people an opportunity to have their say” on the new NAP.
He also reiterated that a “small stakeholder group” made up of representatives from agri food and environmental groups will be set up to “go through the responses to the consultation and to help inform decisions”.
“I hope people take their seats at that table,” Minister Muir said.
Minister hits back at criticism of record
Agriculture Minister Andrew Muir has rejected criticism from some politicians and farmers that he is not concerned about the issues facing the NI farming industry.
“There’s an awful lot happening within farming. I get it and I hear it,” he said. “The easiest thing for me to do as minister would be to ignore these issues, to talk around them, and to give people false hope. What I’m determined to do is chart a course through it.”
In an interview with the Irish Farmers Journal, Minister Muir defended his record since taking office at DAERA in February 2024.
Budget
In particular, he pointed out that he secured the same budget for farm support schemes in NI after the funding mechanism was changed by the UK government last Autumn.
“I was the only minister in the UK that got that funding ring fenced locally in this and future financial years,” he said.
He pointed to a new £12m budget for a “just transition fund for agriculture” and a proposed new capital grant scheme which will help farmers buy low emission slurry spreading equipment.
“We’ve got a scheme developed. I await the money from the finance minister. MLAs have talked an awful lot about the need to support farmers. They need to put their money where their mouth is and support me in the upcoming budget,” said Minister Muir.
Wastewater
The Alliance politician rejected the suggestion that farmers were being asked to take the blame for water quality, while the likes of wastewater treatment works are largely ignored.
Minister Muir said he is pressing for changes to rules, known as SORPI arrangements, which effectively allows overspills of untreated sewage to flow into waterways.
“I want to see an end to that. I do not think it’s fair to farmers where NI Water gets a separate regime compared to farming. Previous environment ministers have ignored this issue,” he said.
The North Down MLA also hit out at “keyboard warriors” who have posted sinister comments on social media about himself and DAERA officials. “They are a disgrace. They do not reflect the farming community in NI,” he said.
Agriculture Minister Andrew Muir.
Legal threat due to 'serious flaws' with NAP
Solicitors acting on behalf of seven agri food organisations in NI have written to Agriculture Minister Andrew Muir calling on him to withdraw the current NAP consultation.
The letter identifies “several serious procedural flaws” with the public consultation exercise on NAP change, including:
Conflicting and unclear information around what has been proposed. Failure to properly engage with farmers and stakeholders when developing the policy. Lack of access to supporting data. Technical issues at public consultation events. The absence of an economic impact assessment.The farm and food organisations argue the consultation process should be re-run following “proper engagement” with the sector.
“This is about getting the foundations right. You can’t build effective regulation on confused proposals and missing evidence,” Ulster Farmers’ Union president William Irvine said.
The letter gives Minister Muir seven days to respond. If that isn’t forthcoming, the various organisations reserve the right to issue High Court legal proceedings.
MLAs support re-run of NAP consultation
A clear majority of MLAs at Stormont supported a non-binding motion on Tuesday which called on Minister Muir to “immediately withdraw” the current NAP consultation.
In the opening speech proposing the motion, the DUP’s Michelle McIlveen said the current NAP consultation was “flawed” and “dangerously disconnected” from the reality of farming.
“Some farmers would need to double the land that they currently use for slurry spreading. That land is simply not available. The only alternative is reducing livestock numbers,” she said.
“You can disagree with the NAP proposals without being anti-environment, and you can seek a more pragmatic way forward while still caring about the quality of our water,” she added.
Various Sinn Féin MLAs raised concerns about the potential impact on upland farmers, particularly with the NAP proposal to ban splash plate slurry spreading by 2030.
Concerns
Declan McAleer said he had “serious concerns” about the consultation process, including the lack of economic and equality impact assessments, as well as “inconsistency” between the consultation and draft regulations.
Ulster Unionist MLA Robbie Butler said the consultation process should start again with a new “co-designed, evidence-led approach” which involves farming and environmental groups.
Eóin Tennyson from Alliance took a different view and suggested in his speech that the agri food sector had too much influence on NAP policies in the past.
“Perhaps the DUP and Sinn Féin are uncomfortable with a Minister who no longer allows government policy to be written by only one select group of stakeholders,” he said.
It was unclear how the SDLP would vote, but in the end the party’s MLAs opposed the motion.
“The consultation is a consultation. I am not endorsing everything that is in the consultation, nor am I predetermining an outcome,” said the SDLP’s Matthew O’Toole.
SHARING OPTIONS