Business and Policy October 2025 – Policy Brief

The Scottish Upland Sheep Support Scheme 

The 2025 Scottish Upland Sheep Support Scheme (SUSSS) is now open for applications.  This scheme provides additional support, on top of the Basic Payment Scheme, to sheep producers who farm in Scotland’s rough grazing areas and helps farmers and crofters maintain the social and environmental benefits that sheep flocks bring to certain areas. 

Your sheep flocks will qualify for this payment if your business relies on rough grazing, with 80 per cent or more of your agricultural land being in Payment Region three and less than 200 hectares of land in Payment Region one.   

Payments are made on home breed ewe hoggs that are kept on your holding (including ‘away winterings’) from 1 December in the year claimed to 31 March the following year.  Ewe hoggs must be less than 12 months of age at the start of the retention period, with the upper payment limit for claiming being one ewe hogg to every four hectares.  

As a condition of the SUSSS payment, businesses must maintain a flock register and keep it up to date.  In addition, you must comply with the Sheep and Goats (Records, Identification and Movement) (Scotland) Order 2009.   

The application window opened on the 1st of September and will close at midnight on the Sunday 30th of November 2025.  While the easiest and quickest way to submit an application is online, you can still submit a paper application form to your local Scottish Government Rural Payments & Inspections Directorate area office, but please note that RPID area offices will be closed on Friday the 28th of November 2025.  

Payment rates are on a flat rate per head basis; the yearly rates will be set once the total number of eligible animals claimed is known, likely to be during April 2026.  The payment rate for 2024 was £63.49 per eligible ewe hogg. 

Full scheme guidance for the Scheme is available on the Rural Payments and Services website. 

 

New rules for applying waste to land 

From 1 November 2025, new regulations will apply to anyone using waste (like treated sewage sludge) to improve soil.  These activities will now fall under the Environmental Authorisation (Scotland) Regulations 2018 (EASR).   

Applying for an authorisation for a new activity before 1 November 2025 

If you are applying for an authorisation to carry out a new application of waste to land activity before 1 November 2025, you can choose to, either: 

• Apply for a new EASR authorisation, or 

• Register a new Paragraph 7 or 8(2) waste exemption. 

If you choose to register a new exemption, this will be valid for 12 months from date of issue.  You will not be able to renew the exemption after it expires and will have to apply for an EASR authorisation before the expiry date on an EASR authorisation now, any authorisation granted will not take effect until 1 November 2025. 

To find out how to apply for an EASR authorisation to use waste on land for the purpose of soil improvement at a single or on multiple sites, please see on line at Soil improvement using waste | Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA).  

 

Improving Biosecurity on Pig Farms 

As part of a project to eradicate an incurable pig disease from Scotland, the Scottish Government has confirmed £309,000 of funding for 2025-2026. 

Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome (PRRS) is estimated to cost the UK farming industry ~ £52 million per year.  PRRS is a contagious viral disease which affects roughly 40% of pig herds in Scotland.  It causes a wide range of symptoms including increased mortality and severe respiratory problems in young piglets, and reproductive issues for sows. 

To date, the project has funded testing affected pig farms and the implementation of control measures to prevent the spread of PRRS and to improve biosecurity standards.  An innovative app has been created which maps where the disease is located and educates farmers on how to prevent incursions to their premises.  It is anticipated that the biosecurity improvements made as a result of this project will help to reduce the reliance on veterinary medicines and will also help prevent other pig diseases, such as African Swine Fever (ASF), which is currently spreading across Europe. 

 

Compulsory Purchase Reform  

The Scottish Government is consulting on proposals to modernise the law on compulsory purchase, to make it easier and simpler to improve land and buildings.  The proposals would update laws dating back almost two centuries, making them more useful for public bodies, while also being fairer to property owners. 

Compulsory Purchase Orders help deliver essential projects to meet local and national needs.  They can support the transformation of disused or dilapidated land and buildings which blight communities.  And they can contribute to tackling the housing emergency by accelerating the delivery of new homes and bringing empty properties back into use. 

The Scottish Government is consulting on changes that would streamline procedures, modernise compensation arrangements and promote better early engagement between authorities and the owners of land that is needed for important public projects.  The Scottish Government is also looking to explore whether powers to require disused property to be sold or leased would be helpful. 

The consultation opened on 19th September and will run for 3 months, closing on 19th December 2025.  

 

Bluetongue BVT-3 – Changes to restrictions in Scotland 

With 78 of the 80 cases of Bluetongue BTV-3 cases reported for the 2025/2026 vector season being in England (2 in Wales), from Sunday 21st September 2025, there was a relaxation of certain movement controls on bluetongue-susceptible animals moving from the restricted zone into Scotland. 

If you are planning to move animals from a BTV-3 restricted zone into Scotland: 

• Use the Bluetongue Movement checker on the  Ruminant Health and Welfare website to understand the rules for your animals.   

• Follow the terms and conditions specified in the General licence EXD662 (E).  

Please note that while lower temperatures in Scotland should prevent midges spreading the disease, lower risk does not mean no risk, and breeding animals, in particular, still pose risks as bluetongue can cause breeding problems and infected mothers can pass the virus onto their offspring.  

Animals that have been in the restricted zone since May 2025 have different testing requirements before moving to Scotland.  Some animals classified as ‘exempt animals’ do not need tests, while other ‘non-exempt animals,’ do.  Testing requirements vary by animal type and sex. For example, while no testing is needed for non-breeding animals and pregnant sheep; breeding bulls, tups and pregnant cattle still require testing unless fully vaccinated. 

For full details of the testing requirement and exemptions, please see online at: Bluetongue movement restrictions for animals – Bluetongue: how to spot and report the disease – gov.scot  

 

Muirburn Licence 

While The Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Bill  was passed by the Scottish Parliament in April 2024; following sustained lobbying, the new licencing scheme for muirburn will not start until 1 January 2026. From this point onwards, a licence will be required to carry out muirburn on any land in Scotland.  It will be an offence to carry out muirburn without a licence.  A revised version of the Muirburn Code will also be published later this year.  NatureScot are currently developing an application form which will also be launched later this year.  

When applying for the new muirburn licence, you will need to provide: 

• details of the area(s) you wish to burn 

• confirmation that you will comply with the Muirburn Code 

• evidence of training  

• peat depth survey data (optional, depending on the area and licensable purpose) 

A further key concession for the upcoming season is that training will be delivered online rather than in person.   

For more information and to view the NatureScot webinar entitled ‘Muirburn Licence – Process for Applicants’, please click on this link. 

Christine Beaton, christine.beaton@sac.co.uk

Upcoming Scottish Government Publications 

Date	Publication
16th October 2025	Cereal & Oil Seed Rape Harvest: First Estimate
30th October 2025	Results from the Scottish Agricultural Census 2025

Key Dates

Date	Action
1st November 2025	Greening cover establishment deadline
30th November 2025	Scottish Upland Support Scheme Application Window closes