Politics

The Agriculture Bill is coming back to Parliament, and that is good news for farmers and the environment, says Tom Lancaster, acting head of land, seas and climate policy at the RSPB.

A good payment scheme will be vital to secure farmers’ post-Brexit future, but other pieces of work on the supply chain, trade and Food Strategy will also be key, says Vicki Hird, farm campaign co-ordinator at Sustain.

The Government is ‘not getting the message’ that the conservation sector needs financial support to weather the Covid-19 storm, the head of the National Trust has said.

The British Growers Association (BGA) has called for a massive expansion of the Government’s seasonal agricultural workers’ pilot after the coronavirus pandemic ‘shelved’ the Home Office’s original plans.

Farm groups have hit out at the Government’s readiness to abandon a zero tariff trade deal with the EU.

Industry leaders have been left disappointed by a Government push to pass the Agriculture Bill with little change to its food security measures, despite the coronavirus pandemic.

With the first round of negotiations for a UK-US Free Trade Agreement (FTA) underway, farm groups have warned Government must uphold its commitment to ensuring food standards are not undermined.

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.

The Government must offer support for dairy farmers to stop them going bust because of the coronavirus pandemic, says Liberal Democrat MP Tim Farron.