AN OVERWHELMED Government department has been rescued by landowner and farming campaigners, the Country Land and Business Association.

Boxes of previously unobtainable application forms were rushed to the CLA's regional offices over the weekend by the Rural Payments Agency division of Defra.

A CLA hotline is now supplementing Defra's own, in a bid to ensure that all farmers establish their entitlements to new payments before a looming deadline.

A last-minute stampede by Yorkshire farmers facing radical EU reforms and running out of time led to unprecedented chaos as the Government's official helpline and regional rural affairs resources in Northallerton and elsewhere were unable to cope with the volume of calls.

Farmers and landowners had been instructed to fill in yet another batch of complex application forms to establish their entitlement to the new Single Payment Scheme which replaces subsidies.

"So many previous deadlines announced by Defra had been extended - in some cases several times - that many farmers simply could not believe that, in view of the short timescales and unresolved issues surrounding such far-reaching changes, the May 16 deadline for submissions would not logically also have been extended," said Dorothy Fairburn, CLA regional director.

"Unfortunately they have cried wolf too many times, but this is the one EU deadline that cannot be changed, whatever the circumstances."

The CLA had responded to its members' confusion and uncertainty by organising a nationwide roadshow about the new application forms. Its Yorkshire venue had to be switched at the last minute last week because of a sudden upsurge in demand for places.

Then came days when the Government's call centre was simply unobtainable - and so, too, were the all-important forms, supplies of which had run out.

"It's utter chaos and with farmers' and landowners' financial futures at stake we're doing our best to help out," said Miss Fairburn. "Sadly, it's not simply a case of form-filling. There are many as yet unanswered questions that won't be resolved by the deadline.

"Only a few weeks ago the CLA discovered that the need to register agricultural land in order to qualify for the much-needed payments suddenly now also included forestry and woodland, previously understood to be exempt. We are still waiting for clarification."

Meanwhile, the CLA is urging farmers and landowners who have not yet submitted applications or who are in urgent need of the forms to contact its hotline at the Easingwold office on 01347 823 803.

Forms are also available from the CLA's North-East office in Alnwick on 01668 217017.