From a blue family to red concerns: Andrew Livingston discusses Labour’s approach to farming subsidies and potential pitfalls ahead
’m not going to disclose how I voted in the General Election, but I will say I come from a pretty blue family – not only the fact that we have lived in West Dorset for the last 25 years, but also because my Grandad used to be the Conservative Party area manager. Thanks to his connections in the party, we have a drawer of Christmas cards from the likes of John Major and Margaret Thatcher (and no, this is not something I shouted around the streets of Liverpool during my time at university!).
It was Albert Einstein who defined insanity as doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. With that in mind, I think it was time for a change. But the new Labour administration has already hit its first stumbling block with the people that feed the nation – where is the money?
They don’t get it
Labour didn’t push hard for the votes of the farmers. In the run-up to the election, Steve Read, now DEFRA Secretary, wouldn’t commit to maintaining the agricultural budget that is so vital for farmers. Those government subsidies are a lifeline for farmers and landowners – the difference between keeping your farm afloat or packing it all in, selling up and making the land someone else’s issue.
Currently, £2.4 billion is dished out as a reward for using the land in a way that benefits the environment while producing food. That subsidy assurance finishes at the end of the year – and the Labour Party has said that no announcement will be made on the continuation of payments for farming until the autumn budget on 30th October. It’s a worrying start from the new government, suggesting that Ministers don’t6 understand how farms work. Farmers don’t operate month to month: you can’t just plant crops, pull them out the next month and make a shedload of money. We all wish it was that easy! The government money gives security to our landowners. It means that they have money coming in no matter what disasters occur in the market for their crops and produce.
If true, Rachel Reeves’ announcement of the £22billion debt that the Conservatives have hidden from the country could be a bad omen for farming. Many projects have already been cut to try and save a few coppers – the Stonehenge A303 tunnel, winter fuel payments and the social care cap have all been axed in the first round of cash-finding.
However, someone should warn the new Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Labour government to tread carefully when it comes to cutting funding to agriculture: farmers know that losing that money will mean many of them will be forced to sell up.
You just have to look across the Channel to see what happens when farmers’ backs are against the wall. I wouldn’t want the new Cabinet to end up with egg on their faces … literally.
