The Scottish Government and Scottish Conservatives have taken potshots at each other over uncertainty surrounding farm support payments once the UK leaves the EU.

The Scottish Government says work is underway to develop future agriculture policy but that there is a lack of clarity from the UK Government regarding future farm funding arrangements.

Meanwhile, the Scottish Conservatives say that Michael Gove, on his visit to Scotland this week, reiterated that farm payments will be maintained to the end of the current parliament in 2022, but that it is for Holyrood to decide how that money will be spent in Scotland.

“It is time for the SNP to put their cards on the table. This failure to plan ahead is a dereliction of duty to farmers across the country,” Conservative agriculture spokesperson Peter Chapman said.

However, a spokesperson for Fergus Ewing, Cabinet Secretary for the Rural Economy, has said that despite repeated requests, no detailed information from Defra has been received regarding either the content of the proposed UK Agriculture Bill, or details of the proposed transition period.

“This is astonishing hypocrisy from the Tories, whose post-Brexit farm cash plans are clear as mud. They should cut out the chaos and infighting and instead give Scotland’s farmers and crofters the total clarity they need and deserve,” the spokesperson said.

They added that no detailed information from Defra, regarding either the content of the proposed UK Agriculture Bill, or details of the proposed transition period, have been received.

“Despite promises from the Secretary of State for Scotland that the UK Government would table amendments to the EU Withdrawal Bill during the Committee stage, to protect devolved competences such as agriculture, no such amendments were forthcoming,” the spokesperson for Ewing concluded.

With labour force issues rapidly coming to a head, Ewing has said that retaining access to the European workforce “via single market membership is essential to meet the needs of rural businesses”.