questionText: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of payment parity between (a) legacy Higher Level Stewardship agreements, and (b) current Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier agreements.
answerText: In February last year, Defra recognised that Higher Level Stewardship (HLS) payment rates had fallen behind the rates offered through other schemes including Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier (CSHT). Defra invested £30 million to increase payment rates ...
heading: Countryside Stewardship Scheme