Anglia Farmer


EDITORIAL


Editor: Johann Tasker T: 07967 634971 E: johann@ruralcity.co.uk


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When shortly isn’t soon enough


A


lmost exactly a year from now – if our political leaders stick to their guns – the UK will leave the European Union. Little more than 12 months remain until


Brexit. More than 18 months have passed since the referendum. Yet it remains all but impossible to say what our new future will herald: we are still waiting for the government to unveil its proposals. An Agriculture Bill is promised for later this


year. Before that, government ministers and civil servants will pore over the responses they receive to a public consultation following the publication this spring of a Defra “command paper” outlining various policy options for farming. Much is riding on the contents of this paper


Anglia Farmer is a controlled circulation magazine published monthly for farmers and growers in the eastern counties. To be included on the circulation list, a farmer must have a minimum of 70 acres of land, or 50 dairy/beef stock, or 50 breeding sows/250 growing stock, or 15,000 laying hens/broiler chickens. Intensive horticulture units are required to have a minimum of two hectares. Subscription is £18 a year (including postage). No responsibility can be accepted by the publishers for the opinions expressed by contributors.


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– for Defra secretary Michael Gove as well as for UK growers and livestock producers. Mr Gove has made a few pledges, mainly about maintaining similar subsidy levels until 2022. But there are few hints of a proper plan. At last month’s NFU conference, Mr Gove


insisted there was a bright future for farming. Yet there was no big announcement about what this might entail. Instead, there were no fewer than fi ve promises that various details would be made


Contents


available “shortly”. Basic payments to farmers would be redistributed to provide different forms of support, said Mr Gove. “I am open- minded as to the best way of proceeding and we will consult in the command paper to be published very shortly.” Regarding concerns over the lack of a seasonal agricultural workers scheme, Mr Gove said he would be saying more shortly. And he said he hoped to “make a fi rm announcement shortly” about a new multi-species livestock information programme to improve food traceability. Details of a forthcoming review to reduce red


tape faced by farmers would be also revealed “very shortly”. It was a similar story when it came to the consultation paper on the future of agricultural policy, which Mr Gove said would be published “very shortly” too. The problem with all this is that farming is


a long term business. Without certainty, it is diffi cult to invest with confi dence. It is all very well Mr Gove saying announcements will be made shortly, but for the farming industry, that can’t come soon enough.


Johann Tasker, Editor


OPINION Johann Tasker


Vol 38 • No 3 • March 2018


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