Online services to cut farmer red tape

The government is to encourage farmers to use online services in a bid to cut red tape and improve its regulation of the agricultural industry.

Officials at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), which has promised to cut 25 per cent of administration by 2009, claim the move could save farmers £28m.

The move comes as part of a wider strategy to improve general regulation in the farming industry.

A DEFRA report, dubbed "Partners for Success", said: "We are developing and refining electronic services for farmers such as an electronic portal for information and advice and an online waste exemption service, and identifying and developing opportunities for collaborative working between inspectorates to reduce burdens on farmers."

DEFRA is creating three databases for land and livestock that will go live in 2007. It said it will give farmers a better view of regulatory charges and cut the time it takes to fill in forms.

In a statement, farming minister Lord Bach said: "This will help reduce overlap and bureaucracy, and simplify farmers' interactions with government."

The National Farmers' Union president, Tim Bennett, responded: "It's good news that we are moving away from old-fashioned regulation and considering other methods. It is also good that there will be a partnership between the industry and DEFRA. This should give the farming community more ownership of the outcome."