Farmers in Northern Ireland have said that the announcement of a date by which time Brexit will have begun must act as a catalyst for debates on post-Brexit policy.

At the Conservative Party Conference in Birmingham, Theresa May announced that she will invoke Article 50 to begin the UK’s withdrawal from the EU before March next year.  According to EU legislation, the process of leaving the union should take two years once a country’s government has invoked Article 50, though Britain will be the first state to actually leave.

Speaking after May’s announcement, Barclay Bell, president of the Ulster Farmers’ Union, said the three months since June’s EU Referendum had been frustrating, as Westminster has refused to engage in discussions about what food and farming policy will look like in an independent Britain.

At the start of September, Northern Ireland’s environment minister confirmed that a renewed agri-environment scheme will open in February 2017, but said that funding would not be covered by Chancellor Philip Hammond’s announcement of funds for farming up until 2020, made in August. Hammond said the government would honour all schemes begun before the UK begins its withdrawal at the Party Conference this week. A spokesperson from Northern Ireland’s environment department (DAERA) confirmed that the announcement will cover the new agri-environment scheme.

Responding to the chancellor’s later announcement this week, UFU welcomed that the guaranteed funding will cover Northern Ireland’s agri-environment scheme and that while the UK is still a member of the EU, businesses are still entitled to apply for EU funds. The union said in a statement, “The guarantee that funding will continue until 2020 is good news, but we are concentrating now on how best to support farmers after 2020.”

Speaking after the Prime Minister set a date for Brexit during her Party Conference speech, Barclay Bell said, “Following this announcement there can now be no justification for delay.  We know when the CAP will end, and we need to have something ready to take its place.  The sooner the debate begins in earnest the greater the chances are of this being an opportunity to create a new support model that will deliver a thriving future for farmers, the countryside and the rural economy.”

Northern Ireland’s farmers are keen to strike a deal that will guarantee a continuation of trade with the Republic of Ireland. This was a hot topic for debate in the run-up to June’s referendum.

Small farmers’ unions, environmentalists and countryside groups - some of which benefit handsomely from the current payment regime - have called for Brexit to mark a fundamental shift in farm support. These groups are calling for an end to area based payments, and for support mechanisms to rely on the delivery of environmental improvements or other public goods. Mr Bell said, “We recognise that all groups have priorities – and we have already seen some environmental bodies trying to dictate the shape of these discussions.  What is needed is for the minister responsible – Andrea Leadsom at DEFRA –to manage the debate between devolved ministers and all those with an interest in a successful countryside and to set clear priorities.”

The UFU president said it is important to remember that those campaigning for Brexit in June, including Mrs Leadsom, promised farmers a successful future outside the CAP, with less red tape. However, at the time, policy experts said that farmers hoping for a regulatory bonfire after a Brexit event are likely to be disappointed.

Bell wants to see a support regime that is “less bureaucratic” than the Common Agriculture Policy (CAP), but that matches it in terms of spending. He said, “The UK has always been a net contributor to the CAP so it can afford to support agriculture and rural communities.”