Legislation

The National Food Strategy will have a renewed focus on food security because of the issues caused by the coronavirus pandemic, its lead Henry Dimbleby has said.

The coronavirus pandemic has shone a spotlight on food security, giving us an opportunity to reshape post-Brexit policy around production, says Matt Legge, a sheep, beef and pig farmer from the Isle of Wight.

Issues such as a lack of agricultural labour have been exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic, but Brexit is their root cause, says John Finnie, Green MSP for the Highlands and Islands.

The Rural Payments Agency (RPA) has confirmed it will offer bridging loans to farmers still waiting for 2019 stewardship payments.

The Tenant Farmers’ Association (TFA) has called on Government to ensure farm payments are made on time as the deadline to claim was extended due to disruption caused by the coronavirus.

The Covid-19 nightmare may have handed UK farming an opportunity to resolve a major Brexit threat – loss of EU labour. Let’s make sure we give our new ‘land army’ a good experience this summer, says George Dunn, chief executive of the TFA.

The NFU has called on the Government to provide a BPS 2020 ‘payment guarantee’ to help farmers struggling with cashflow issues due to the coronavirus pandemic.

With the UK under lockdown as the coronavirus pandemic continues, Parliament is moving to carry out its work remotely. But what does this mean for farming legislation? Abi Kay explores.

Rural Economy Secretary Fergus Ewing has called on the UK Government to take advantage of any EU cash made available to support farmers through the coronavirus crisis.

NFU Cymru has branded Welsh Government’s decision to publish draft regulations of an all-Wales Nitrate Vulnerable Zone (NVZ) ‘ill-judged’ in light of the Covid-19 crisis.