FARMERS will have to leave a two-metre margin near hedges and ditches under the single farm payment cross-compliance conditions.

The announcement by Margaret Beckett, Defra Secretary of State, was greeted with "extreme disappointment" by NFU president Tim Bennett, who said it had all the hallmarks of a political decision, "where the symbol has become more important than the substance".

Mark Hudson, president of the Country Land and Business Association, described it as "an unfortunate piece of gold-plating".

English farmers operated in an open, single European market. The compulsory margin was an unnecessary further obligation faced by no others.

He acknowledged the measurement was from the centre of the hedge but it simply added to the complexity of the administration. "It will set an artificial threshold on field sizes which it is better not to do," said Mr Hudson. It would have been far simpler to deliver protection through the Entry Level Scheme rather than cross-compliance.

"This decision once again indicates the inability of Defra and its agencies to resist endlessly tinkering with micro land management instead of letting farmers get on with the job," he said. "We appear to have gold-plated legislation - something that the Prime Minister pledged would not happen - and, for every issue solved, there appears to be another that is yet to be discussed."

George Dunn, chief executive of the Tenant Farmers' Association, accused Defra of ignoring industry views and comments and paying little regard to the practicalities involved.

The TFA believed the cross-compliance conditions were "overly ambitious, overly controlling, overly bureaucratic, unworkable as a package and in some respects beyond the scope of the EU regulations".

It was vital environmental management stayed central to farm business management.

Both government and industry had experience, skills and knowledge to share. "Continue to use a heavy hand and gain only strife, bitterness and resentment," warned Mr Dunn.

Mr Bennett found it galling that the condition applied only to England. "The rest of the UK will not be required to keep uncultivated margins," he said.

The two-metre margin had originally been part of the voluntary entry level agri-environment scheme. The Government hoped at least 70pc of English farmers would sign up to it.

"By making them a compulsory measure in cross-compliance, Defra has, at a stroke, made it harder for farmers to enter the ELS," said Mr Bennett, "It would be a real tragedy if the ELS targets were put at risk."

The decision on the two-metre margin was contained in a written statement from Mrs Beckett, who said she was announcing a package of "light touch and common sense" measures designed to set a new environmental standard for agriculture.

Farmers in England, sharing £1.7bn of subsidies, will have to meet the new cross-compliance standards, designed to give extra protection to the environment, soil, wildlife habitats and landscape. They will have to protect hedges and ditches by not cultivating, fertilising or spraying within two metres of the centre, or at least a metre from the top of the bank in the case of ditches.

Farmers will also be eligible for payment under the ELS for looking after hedges, and for creating a range of buffer strips next to the cross-compliance protection zone.

The Government is prepared to look at a derogation for small fields of under two hectares, and for newly-planted hedges.

The new hedge and ditch protection measure will come into effect from the start of the main cropping cycle in July 2005.

Mr Bennett still hopes to persuade Defra to drop the compulsory measure. He will also raise a proposed time restriction on hedgerow trimming which could create practical problems for upland farmers.

He was further concerned that "modulation" would increase to 5pc in England in 2005, to fund the ELS, and to 10pc in 2006. Europe would have to agree to the early increase.

He said potentially, and uniquely in Europe, it would mean almost all farmers having a compulsory deduction from the single farm payment to fund a scheme which - because of the compulsory margin - they might be reluctant to join.

Mrs Beckett said the Government wanted cross-compliance inspections to be cost-effective, proportionate and a minimal burden on farmers. A new whole-farm approach would cut red tape.

She announced set-aside rates under the flat-rate single payment scheme in England. They will be 8pc outside the upland Severely Disadvantaged Area and 1.3pc in the non-moorland SDA. There will be no requirement to set aside land in the moorland SDA.

Farmers unhappy about their moorland boundary line will be able to appeal to the Rural Payments Agency and Rural Development Service. If they are still unhappy, a formal appeal procedure could follow.

Discussions on the National Reserve are continuing.

Defra also hopes shortly to come up with a solution on how to apply the single farm payment across common land.