# Farm Land and Rural Development Act 1988, Section 2: Grants in respect of farm woodlands.

Extent: E+W+S

(1) The appropriate authority may, with the approval of the Treasury, by scheme provide in relation to any one or more parts of Great Britain for the payment by the appropriate Minister to the owners and lessees of land of—
(a) grants towards expenditure which has been or is to be incurred for the purposes of, or in connection with, the conversion of land from agricultural use to use for woodlands or the management of land that has been so converted;
(b) grants for abating any financial loss which has been or will be suffered in consequence of the conversion of land from agricultural use to use for woodlands.
(2) Without prejudice to the generality of the preceding provisions of this section, a scheme under this section providing for the payment of grants may—
(a) impose requirements to be complied with by persons applying for the grants;
(b) confer a discretion on the appropriate Minister as to the payment of the grants, as to the manner and timing of their payment and as to their amounts;
(c) provide for the persons to whom the grants are payable to include persons who become owners or lessees of land after its conversion to use for woodlands;
(d) provide for the grants to be paid to persons on such terms as may be specified in or determined under the scheme and for the modification of any such terms in such manner as may be so specified or determined;
(e) provide for the terms on which the grants are paid to impose such requirements on the persons to whom they are paid, including requirements to be complied with after the payment of the grants and requirements as to the repayment of grants, as may be so specified or determined;
(f) provide for any discretion conferred by or under the scheme to be exercisable in such circumstances and by reference to such matters, and the opinion of such persons, as may be so specified or determined;
(g) contain such supplemental, consequential and transitional provision as the appropriate authority thinks fit; and
(h) make different provision for different cases.
(3) Where the Secretary of State and the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food jointly carry out a review of the rates at which grants are payable under any schemes for the time being in force under this section, the Secretary of State and that Minister may lay a report before Parliament stating—
(a) whether, as a result of the review, they propose that any modifications of those rates should be made; and
(b) the modifications, if any, that are proposed;
and it shall be the duty of the Secretary of State and that Minister to ensure that such a review is carried out, and a report under this subsection is laid before Parliament, no later than 30th September 1991 and that no more than five years elapse after the laying of a report under this subsection before another such review is carried out and another such report is so laid.
(4) The power to make a scheme under this section shall be exercisable by statutory instrument and such a scheme shall not be made unless a draft of it has been laid before, and approved by resolution of, each House of Parliament.
(5) A grant paid by virtue of a scheme under this section shall be paid out of money provided by Parliament.
(6) In this section—
“agricultural use”—
(a) in relation to England and Wales, means agricultural use within the meaning of the Agriculture Act 1947, other than use for woodlands; and
(b) in relation to Scotland, means agricultural use within the meaning of the Agriculture (Scotland) Act 1948, other than use for woodlands;
“the appropriate authority” and “the appropriate Minister” have the same meanings as in section 1 above.
(7) Nothing in this section or in any scheme under this section shall prejudice the power of the Forestry Commissioners to pay grants under section 1 of the Forestry Act 1979or the power of the Natural Resources Body for Wales to pay grants under article 10B of the Natural Resources Body for Wales (Establishment) Order 2012 (S.I.2012/1903).
(8) In the application of subsection (3) to any scheme relating to Scotland, including any scheme which relates also to other parts of Great Britain, any references in that subsection to the Secretary of State and the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food acting jointly shall in so far as the scheme relates to Scotland be read as a reference to the Scottish Ministers and the appropriate Minister for a part of Great Britain other than Scotland shall have no functions under that subsection in respect of any such scheme in so far as it relates to Scotland.

---
Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1988/16/section/2 (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/farm-land-and-rural-development-act-1988/section-2
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.