zilspeed
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| posted on 28/4/05 at 10:43 AM |
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Motorsport events cancelled - serious stuff
**Copied from the MSA press release**
PRESS RELEASE
First motor sport events cancelled as campaign grows to overturn new DEFRA regulations
The Motor Sports Association (MSA) has received notification of the first cancellations of motor sport events as a direct result of legislation
imposed by the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA).
DEFRA's decision to stop subsidies to farmers who allow part of their land to be used, even temporarily, for any form of motor sport has
threatened to destroy more than 40% of 4-wheeled grassroots motor sport in the UK as well as 4,000 off-road motor cycle meetings.
The first events to fall victim to the legislation include sporting trials, autograss racing and 4x4 events that had been due to take place on rural
farm land, but there are fears that these are just the tip of the iceberg.
The media campaign to overturn the legislation is gathering momentum and reflects the serious nature of the threat posed by DEFRA's actions.
Auto Express magazine estimates that nearly 50,000 competitors and officials will be directly hit by the new ruling, with as many as 250,000
spectators, families and service crews also affected. "There will be a knock-on effect on garages, local B&Bs and other rural
businesses," 4x4 event organiser Chris Tomley told the magazine.
Motorsport News has started its own campaign to save Britain's grassroots motor sport. It urges everyone to sign up to its petition at
www.petitiononline.com/som, and quotes trials multi-champion Julian Fack: "As we see it, this could be the death of sporting trials. This is
devastating news."
Elsewhere in the paper, MSA Chief Executive Colin Hilton has written: "This is a fundamental threat to motor sport and we need everyone to join
the campaign. The time for taking it on the chin is over; we now have to fight for our sport." The full text of his article can be found on the
MSA website, www.msauk.org, in the News section, as can previous press releases.
Editor's notes:
The Single Payment Scheme (SPS) replaces the Common Agricultural Policy and now pays farmers for the land they own, not what they produce. The
European Directive on agricultural subsidies does not prohibit motor sports on land eligible for SPS. However, the Department for the Environment,
Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) has taken the decision, without consultation, to stop these payments to UK landowners if agricultural land is used,
even temporarily, for motor sport.
Release MSA05-026: 20 April 2005
Issued on behalf of the Motor Sports Association by MPA Media Limited
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
BEN TAYLOR
MPA MEDIA, IMPERIAL HOUSE, IMPERIAL ROAD, LONDON SW6 2AG
T +44 (0)20 7384 8725
F +44 (0)20 7384 1238
M +44 (0)7866 449940
This message is intended for the named recipient only. It may contain privileged and/or confidential information. If you are not the intended
recipient, you must not copy, distribute or take any action in respect of it. If you have received this message in error, please telephone the sender.
All material © MPA Media Limited, 2005
[Edited on 28/4/05 by zilspeed]
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zilspeed
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| posted on 28/4/05 at 10:44 AM |
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So - if this angers/annoys/upsets you, you might like to think about signing the petition.
"Save Our Motorsport" Petition
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mangogrooveworkshop
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| posted on 28/4/05 at 10:50 AM |
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Its my TAXES they **** take to pay these farmers so we should be able to say what we use the land for
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colibriman
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| posted on 28/4/05 at 11:04 AM |
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Infuriating......
heck this Government and their sidekicks have a lot to answer for....
Think the monster raving loony party is going to get my vote at this rate... certainly won't be the reds or blues
need a bike engine? - www.colibriman.com
SVA ready Mk Indyblade possibly for sale.....if the offers good...!
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NOTE:This user is registered as a LocostBuilders trader and may offer commercial services to other users
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JoelP
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| posted on 28/4/05 at 11:34 AM |
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shame theres so few sigs - there should be 100k in the end, surely theres at least that many petrolheads.
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MikeP
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| posted on 28/4/05 at 11:41 AM |
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I can understand why this is upsetting and really none of my business, but I'm curious about how things work over there.
You all are not bother by the fact that these farmers, who are being subsidised to stay producing, can "double dip" by also collecting
fees for other uses of their land and not for produce? I imagine this could be for more than motorsports.
Over here if it were occasional use no one would bother them, only if it were frequent, regular use. I'm guessing these events are regularily
scheduled and are regular income to the farmers.
Another side of the argument is that your taxes are artificially lowering the cost of grass racing; the racing organizations could raise fees and make
up what the farmer lost from DEFRA from the people that attend.
Another approach could be to lobby DEFRA to reduce a farmers subsidy by the percent of land used for other activities.
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clbarclay
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| posted on 28/4/05 at 01:26 PM |
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DEFRA - Department for Eradication of Farming and Real Agriculture.
Defra don't pay farmers, EU does.
EU won't stop system as it imploys too many pen pushers.
EU changes payments from production based (£ per ton produced) to enviromental management based (£ per hectare) sceam. Mainly so EU is not bankrupted
by new countrys joining. The new countrys would get more than they give under old system.
Farmers are only paid if enough enviromentally friendly things are done on the land.
UK farming is barely sustainable, for arible to compete with world market, it would need to be prairey farmed like america, australia, eastern europe.
That would spoil the 'nice' england and rest of western europe has. Also ther are bans on hedge removal so feild size can't be
increased for more efficent prairey farming.
Because subsidies are per hectare, any land used by motor sport etc. stops payment on the land it uses. Therefore farmer is not being paid
twice for that bit of land, unless he/she is very skillful/lucky.
[Edited on 28/4/05 by clbarclay]
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clbarclay
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| posted on 28/4/05 at 01:29 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by colibriman
Infuriating......
heck this Government and their sidekicks have a lot to answer for....
Think the monster raving loony party is going to get my vote at this rate... certainly won't be the reds or blues
Are you realy going to vote for a party that says it will reduce school class size by moving the desk closer together.
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phelpsa
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| posted on 28/4/05 at 01:43 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by clbarclay
quote:
Originally posted by colibriman
Infuriating......
heck this Government and their sidekicks have a lot to answer for....
Think the monster raving loony party is going to get my vote at this rate... certainly won't be the reds or blues
Are you realy going to vote for a party that says it will reduce school class size by moving the desk closer together.
And aims to abolish gravity 
Anyway, this is just stupid!
Adam
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MikeP
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| posted on 28/4/05 at 02:16 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by clbarclay
Because subsidies are per hectare, any land used by motor sport etc. stops payment on the land it uses. Therefore farmer is not being paid
twice for that bit of land, unless he/she is very skillful/lucky.
[Edited on 28/4/05 by clbarclay]
Then it doesn't make any sense - where do I sign  ?
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marktigere1
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| posted on 28/4/05 at 02:56 PM |
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Don't worry.
The way house building is using up land there won't be room for motorsport or growing food.
Cheers
Mark
If a bolt is stuck force it.
If it breaks, it needed replacing anyway!!!
(My Dad 1991)
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clbarclay
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| posted on 28/4/05 at 03:02 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by marktigere1
Don't worry.
The way house building is using up land there won't be room for motorsport or growing food.
Cheers
Mark
Who said the land is being used to produce food?
Any way food comes from supermarkets doesn't it.
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clbarclay
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| posted on 28/4/05 at 03:15 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by MikeP
quote:
Originally posted by clbarclay
Because subsidies are per hectare, any land used by motor sport etc. stops payment on the land it uses. Therefore farmer is not being paid
twice for that bit of land, unless he/she is very skillful/lucky.
[Edited on 28/4/05 by clbarclay]
Then it doesn't make any sense - where do I sign ?
If you've got any woodland etc. you don't have to be a farmer to get the payment either.
I wouldn't be surprised some astute business man is claiming single farm payment on hyde park.
Quote from a defra booklet on single payment scheme (feb 2005)
"There is no requirement to undertake any production in order to be regarded as a farmer for the purpose of the scheme, but whether or not you
produce you will still need to comply with the requirements to keep your land in GAEC (good agricultural and enviromental condition)."
Like I say, our landlord is claiming the payment on woodland he uses purely for shooting. So like all good govement etc. schemes, there probably
won't be enough money to go round.
Farmers, do we ever stop complaining?
(rhetorical qestion)
It makes perfec sence, if the land is deemed in GAEC, and you meet the legal definition of a farmer you get the payment. Land with a grass trak on it
etc. is not in GAEC, so farmer isnt payed for it.
[Edited on 28/4/05 by clbarclay]
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flak monkey
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| posted on 28/4/05 at 03:28 PM |
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Well i signed it...its just a pathetic excuse to ruin some peoples lives... destroying a hobby (and much more to a lot of people).
David
Sera
http://www.motosera.com
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britishtrident
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| posted on 28/4/05 at 03:37 PM |
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Never was any problem getting land for PCT, grass autotests before set-aside subsidies --- set-aside should be stopped altogether.
Hopefully it will also reduce of 4x4 courses for urban 4x4 plonkers.
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NS Dev
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| posted on 4/5/05 at 01:36 PM |
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I fully agree that DEFRA, the bunch of interfering arseh0les that they are, should F off and leave us alone (I am an autograsser in case you
haven't guessed by now with all my posts!) BUT......................we will carry on anyway. If the payments are not made to farmers, then we
will raise the money and pay ourselves.
Also, fortunately for autograss, only the actual 1/4 mile oval is classed as "motorsport use" the pits etc etc are not according to NASA
lawyers. (note that NASA run national autograss, NOT the MSA!)
On another note, and a very unfortunate one, I see a teenager was killed at the weekend in a Motocross event, so insurance costs will knacker us
before land costs do at this rate. (they doubled this year)
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