One of the great ongoing debates between farmers, legislators, administrators and politicians is how best to simplify schemes.

With the CAP plan for 2028 onwards being unveiled next month, we are hearing the latest round of demands from farmers that schemes be simplified and promises from politicians that they will.

It seems unlikely. It’s the way of the world in the 21st century. Farmers are not unique in that way. If you talk to a mechanic or a builder, they will tell you they have mountains of compliance and verification work that simply didn’t exist 20 years ago. And as for public servants like teachers and nurses, their paperwork, particularly administrative work, has mushroomed.

The big difference for farmers is that they have to commit their time and expertise effectively for free. They can’t pass on the costs incurred the way a mechanic or builder can.

Indeed, this compliance and administration is a driver of the higher cost of living in Ireland, whether it’s building a house or a room, or servicing a car or tractor.

Farmers want a simple scheme, harking back to the days of the Basic Payment Scheme post-decoupling, and the early REPS schemes that ran in the 1990s. Comply with the requirements, and get a ball of money.

While a simplified scheme for small farmers (and small farmers in European terms means less than 10ha) might be possible, farms with any significant amount of activity can probably dream on.

But there’s more than one way to skin a cat. The knowledge transfer programme placed a significant value on the time commitment made by advisers and farmers alike. Why not recognise and compensate farmers for the compliance work done on a myriad of other schemes?

Example

The best example that can be made is of farmers who participate in the organic scheme.

They receive an administrative payment of €2,000 in the year of establishment. In subsequent years, participants receive €1,400 per annum.

Now I’m sure there’s a significant administrative burden associated with organic farming, but I don’t think the ink that organic farmers use is some rare, expensive organic ink.

The paper they use may be recycled, but it’s not that much more expensive than your standard A4 sheet. It’s right that organic farmers are paid for administration, but their burden is not more significant than that of a conventional dairy, drystock or tillage farmer.

So perhaps it’s time that all farmers got paid for their time through the schemes. Instead of pushing for unlikely simplification, push for recognition of the cost of compliance work in both time and expertise, and recognise that as a public good to be paid for through the CAP and its schemes. Simple.