Mr. Patrick Kent:

I thank the Chairman and committee members for the invitation to speak about the Heritage Bill. The ICSA strongly supports the Bill and is anxious to see it implemented. In particular, it supports the extension of burning and hedge cutting dates on a pilot basis. We believe being able to control vegetation on hills needs the added flexibility of being able to cut in the month of March. Likewise, we believe flexibility to cut hedges in the month of August is essential. We have adopted that view owing to the effects of climate change. We have experienced ever more difficulties because of prolonged milder but wetter weather conditions, all of which means that we cannot get essential work done because of the current restrictions.

Let us not be under any illusion. It is essential to control vegetation on hilly ground. It is also essential to ensure hills are not overrun by scrub such as gorse and heather. It would be ideal to have a programme of rotational burning, which is where the current restrictions cause problems. If farmers can be reasonably confident that they will get a chance to burn some ground every year, a rotation with restricted burning can work very well.

It is important to point out that hill farmers are under pressure to keep land in good agricultural condition. The review of the land parcel identification system, LPIS, in 2013 showed how vulnerable farmers were in terms of land eligibility. It is unacceptable that they must pay a penalty for a failure to comply with one set of rules when another set are too rigid and unworkable. The reality is that burning in the winter months is seldom feasible and short days and weather patterns mean that engaging in such work in the month of February rarely works. It must be understood the land about which we are talking is unsuitable for topping or the use of other types of mechanical control. Also, the best outcome for wildlife in the long term is achieved by livestock grazing in an extensive manner.

It is important to note that there is a code of practice on controlled burning which we fully advocate. Similarly, we support the allowing of hedge cutting in the month of August. One must understand hedge cutting is done mainly by contractors who have invested in expensive machinery to do the job as efficiently as possible. The window of opportunity under the current regime is very narrow. In practice, we try to get all of the work done in a period of approximately three months from September to early December. As we have seen this year, for much of the period we have been beset by heavy rainfall and poor ground conditions.

Hedge cutting is critical for road safety. Unlike many countries in Europe, all sorts of vehicle access public roads on which visibility is dependent on having well maintained hedges. The ICSA believes hedges should be dealt with in the month of August. This work should not be done along public roads in November or December when daylight hours are short and visibility is often poor. Driving conditions are often made worse by inclement weather. For health and safety reasons, having hedge cutting vehicles on the roads at this time of year is far from best practice.

It is important that we ensure landowners can trim hedges regularly in order to maintain them as an effective barrier for livestock. The rural environment protection, REP, scheme helped to transform the landscape of the countryside as it provided the impetus for many farmers to renovate hedges that had been neglected for many years. Many new hedgerows have since been planted under the agri-environment options scheme, AEOS, and the green low-carbon agri-environment scheme, GLAS. As part of GLAS, 7,500 farmers have planted 1,200 km of new hedgerows, while a further 3,300 km have been rejuvenated by coppicing and hedge laying. This demonstrates that farmers are keen to maintain diverse landscapes on which relatively small fields are divided by hedges in contrast to the huge open plains in other countries. We must be sensible. No farmer wants to have a hedge that is out of control and full of holes. Farmers who make a huge effort and financial investment in planting or rejuvenating hedges make a commitment to having a diverse landscape that is wildlife friendly. If we make the maintenance of hedges too challenging by imposing unduly harsh limitations on hedge cutting, we will have created a perverse disincentive to engage in more hedgerow planting and we will have a more bland open countryside only fenced by wire. If we at least get roadside hedge cutting out of the way in the month of August, it will be easier to have internal hedges cut in the months of September and October.

We must have regard for health and safety as we continuously hear about the trauma caused by farm accidents. It is beyond debate that farmers and contractors are under too much pressure to get the work done in too short a timeframe. Operators who rush to get it done before the weather breaks are much more likely to make mistakes and be involved in accidents. As I mentioned, trying to access a public road is lethal if there is no or poor visibility. Neatly trimmed hedges are a critical piece of infrastructure when it comes to road safety.

I am not one for dismissing the environmental lobby. Farmers are to the forefront in ensuring good environmental management. However, we believe the concerns expressed about bird life are overstated. We also believe that unless we have viable farmers, there will not be good environmental management. We strongly commend the Bill to the committee. It is a pilot project, but it is the way to go. The legislation has been a long time in gestation and it is now time to put it into practice. If there is credible evidence that the change has caused trends to worsen, the Minister can change the provision in the future. However, we must be pragmatic about the problems that impact severely on farmers and road users.