To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many non-compliance penalties were imposed by his Department in each of the last five years; what the most common reason was for such penalties being imposed; what the (a) largest, (b) smallest, (c) median and (d) mean penalty was in each such year; and if he will make a statement. (300295)

In answering this question we have taken ‘non-compliance penalties’ to mean all cases where a reduction has been made to farmers’ payments under the single payment scheme. The figures in the following table therefore include minor over-declarations of land area, which in a regulatory sense do not qualify as a ‘penalty’, as well as regulatory penalties for late claims and breaches of both eligibility and cross compliance rules.

We do not yet have data for 2009 as processing checks and inspections have not been completed.

The most common reason for ‘penalties’ being imposed is through over-declared land areas.