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It would certainly be helpful for the committee to understand the general direction of travel and whether you are looking for a settlement to be based on your rural development plan and your future plan for delivering support for rural areas or to be based on a formula—I hesitate to suggest that that could be similar to the funding formula that we have for the rest of the Scottish budget. It would be good to understand the situation and whether you are looking for the Scottish Government’s ambitions to be funded or whether some sort of formula will be in place for funding in future years.

I will stop you if it is not—

Thank you very much. I just want to make members aware that we are very short of time. It is such a huge portfolio and I understand that we could take evidence for quite some time. I ask members to try to keep their questions as brief as possible, which is not easy, particularly when we have to cover forestry and woodland. On that note, I bring in Ariane Burgess.

We move on to questions on agricultural support, from Emma Harper.

Might that be part of your consideration?

Would it be in the next five years?

Just on a point of clarification, 70 per cent of payments will be basic payments delivered in tiers 1 and 2, but that 70 per cent will remain basic payments. None of that money will be transferred to tier 4; however, some payments will be drawn down only when certain conditions are met. Is that right?

Thank you, minister. Are there any questions?

I thank the cabinet secretary and her supporting act. We very much appreciate the time that you have given this morning in what has been a long session.

I suspend the meeting for approximately 10 minutes to allow for a changeover of witnesses and a comfort break.

Is the committee content to delegate authority to me to sign off a report on the instrument?

Members indicated agreement.