Scotsman: 'Secret' £1.5 million farm subsidies to MSPs

by Karin Goodwin

FIVE MSPs received a total of £1.5 million in farm subsidies over a five-year period without having to declare it on the register of interests, it emerged yesterday.

Figures revealing all farm subsidies received by MSPs between 2000 and 2004 were released by the Scottish Government over the weekend.

The previous Labour-Liberal Democrat administration had refused to give out details of the payouts, funded by the European Union and administered by the Scottish Government, but that decision was overturned by Kevin Dunion, the Information Commissioner.

The figures show the former Labour MSP John Home Robertson's family business, Home Robertson Farming Partnership, was the largest recipient, having been awarded £559,504 over the five years. The business, in which the former deputy minister for rural affairs is a "sleeping partner", was given a further £225,000 in 2005.

George Lyon, the Liberal Democrat MSP for Argyll and Bute until May, also benefited, to the tune of £291,000 for his business, A&K Farms.

John Scott, the Conservative MSP for Ayr, who owns the farming business W Scott & Son, was given £245,000 between 2000 and 2004.

Another Tory MSP, Jamie McGrigor, who represents the Highlands and Islands, owns Ardchonnel Farms and was awarded £164,000. He has valued his estate at £500,0000, according to official government records.

Alex Johnstone (North East Scotland) was the third Tory MSP to gain - £76,000 was paid to his firm, A Johnstone & Partners.

None of the MSPs had declared the grants or put the information on the MSPs' register of interests - their inclusion was not obligatory. Two of the MSPs also failed to declare the name of the business in which they had a stake, although they did state involvement in a family firm.

However, all the MSPs contacted defended their right to receive subsidies and insisted they had done nothing untoward.

Mr McGrigor said: "I declare the income of my business, but if I were also to declare individual subsidies, I might as well declare every single sheep or cow I own.

"But I have no problem with this information being made available to the public."

Mr Scott said of the subsidy: "It goes to the company, not me. The whole point of the support system is that, without it, there would be no agriculture at all."

James Withers, of the National Union of Farmers Scotland, said, like other farmers, MSPs often faced a stark choice - accept the subsidies or go bust. "The food industry in this country is profitable, but the profits go into the pockets of the big retailers, while farmers struggle to cover their costs," he said.

However, critics claim subsidies are weighted in favour of large, already profitable farms, and smaller operations are often shut out. Jack Thurston, the founder of Farmsubsidy.org, which campaigns for transparency on the issue, said the MSPs were the latest in a long line of parliamentarians who had benefited.

"It's clearly difficult for them to represent the public interest when they have a financial stake in the system," he said.

"I welcome the fact that this information has been made available, so the public are aware who may have vested interests."

Matthew Elliot, chief executive of the Taxpayers Alliance, said: "It's unsurprising these MSPs failed to declare their subsidy payments, because although what they did isn't illegal, it does look dubious. Making money from a system you are responsible for monitoring is a big conflict of interests."

In 2005, it was revealed that major recipients of subsidies under the European Union's common agricultural policy included some of Britain's richest people. The dukes of Westminster, Marlborough and Bedford were among those who received six-figure sums.