Suckler Beef Climate Group Programme Board: terms of reference

Purpose

1. To provide a mechanism for external advice, support and challenge, on the development of a scheme aimed at reducing GHG emissions of beef production.  The views offered by group members will also inform broader development work on the preparation of new forms of support for agriculture more generally.

Remit

2.     To provide advice and oversight to the Scottish Government on the implementation of the  recommendations made to the Scottish Government by the Suckler Beef Climate Group on the development of support mechanisms for the sector, specifically:
2.1 –    Development of specific objectives of any policy interventions, such as a new support scheme or conditionality applied to existing support,  taken forward from the Suckler Beef report .
2.2 – Development of minimum requirements for entry to future support payments.
2.3 –    Development of management options for participants. 
2.4 –    Development of actions relating to collaboration, access to training and capital investments in order to cut emissions, enhance biodiversity and improve business efficiency, productivity and profitability.
2.5 –      Development of an appropriate monitoring and evaluation framework for interventions discussed.
2.6 –    Development of actions required to demonstrate environmental credentials to businesses and consumers whilst increasing profit margins for producers.
2.7 -    Providing advice on the necessary costs of delivery of government programmes.  

3.    The outputs from this group will also inform the development of policy interventios for climate friendly farming more generally as Scotland moves towards a Scottish post-CAP rural support policy after 2024. 

Membership

4.    The group will be co-chaired by Fergus Ewing, Cabinet Secretary for Rural Economy & Tourism and Jim Walker.   Membership will be based on nominations from the Cabinet Secretary and Jim Walker. Members will be required to declare their interests prior to participation in the group.
5.    While members are drawn from a range of interests and expertise from across the agri-food system, their involvement is based on their experiences and views rather than representing the views of their organisations.  Members will share relevant industry and/or skills related knowledge/expertise as appropriate and be expected to lead on specific actions where appropriate.   In order to be transparent in taking forward work, membership and declared interests will be a matter of public record. 

Meetings

6.    The Scottish Government’s Agriculture Policy Division will provide a secretariat to the meetings which will be jointly chaired, as set out above.  While the group’s discussions will be summarised and publicly available to ensure transparency, specific content will not be attributed to individual participants.  

7.    The group will have its first virtual meeting in November with subsequent meetings in December, January and February with scope for further virtual interactions in-between if need be.  

Timescales

8.    The SBCG will be short-life and conclude its work by February 2021. After this date, separate governance structures will be established to oversee the implementation of the Scottish Beef Climate Scheme.

9.    Proposed meeting dates are as follows, with any further meetings to be scheduled in due course:

• 26 November 2pm-4pm
• 21 December 10am-12pm 
• January & February TBC

Expenses

10.    Programme board members are entitled to be reimbursed by the Scottish Government for travel and subsistence expenses that are necessary or expedient for the proper discharge of their functions.

Resourcing

11.    Resources will be made available to take forward actions identified and agreed by the Group, including the commissioning of undertakings through third parties.

Conflict of Interest

12.    If a member has any conflict of interest on any matter and is present at a meeting at which the matter is the subject of consideration, the member should prior to any consideration of the matter, disclose the interest and the general nature thereof.

Membership

13.    The members of the group are:

• Fergus Ewing, Cabinet Secretary for Rural Economy & Tourism (Co-chair)
• Jim Walker (Co-chair)
• Steven Thomson, SRUC
• Andrew Lacey, SRUC
• Andrew Moxey, Pareto Consulting
• Tim Bailey, SAOS
• Bob Yuill, SAOS
• Andy McGowan, SAMW
• Scott Walker, NFUS
• Neil Wilson, IAAS
• Claudia Rowse, NatureScot
• Allan Clarke, QMS
• Sarah Millar, QMS
• Claire Simonetta, Farmer
• Pat Lambert, Farmer
• SG Officials – in attendance
• Secretariat – SG officials