Abolishing direct payments will enable young farmers to get foot on farming ladder

Prof Dieter Helm, chairman of the independent Natural Capital Committee and specialist in energy policy, regulation and the environment at Oxford University, said pillar one payments distorted the market and were responsible for pushing up prices to unsustainable levels.

He told the Oxford Farming Conference it was ironic the EU had introduced young farmer payments when its Common Agricultural Policy was the reason high land values were preventing young people from getting into the industry.

Without subsidies, Prof Helm said the UK would see land values normalise to reflect yields, farmers would be paid to deliver public goods and prices would be determined by the market.

Land prices were also a hot topic at the Oxford Real Farming Conference, where Environment Secretary Michael Gove agreed the current payment regime often locked out those without access to large amounts of capital.