Brexit Hub

The UK’s relationship with the EU is the most important one for the farming industry, but it’s amazing how many people forget that, says Oliver Dowding, arable farmer and agricultural spokesman for the Green Party in the south west.

As UK trade negotiations with countries all over the globe progress, there has never been a better time to redefine the value of food, says Sue Pritchard, chief executive of the Food, Farming and Countryside Commission.

After the Auditor General for Wales found WG mishandled RDP funds, Ministers must prove they can properly channel money to farmers through their post-Brexit schemes, says Paul Davies, leader of the Welsh Conservatives.

With many practicalities still to be resolved in order to get the new UK border up and running, Brexit has only just begun for the food industry, says Shane Brennan, chief executive of the Cold Chain Federation.

Many Conservatives idolise the US and are desperate to do a trade deal with them, which is fine. But they should know Congress has a say on all US agreements, and the UK Parliament needs the same right, says Neil Parish, chairman of the Efra Committee.

On Brexit, as with changes to dairy contracts, farmers must speak with one voice or risk going unheard, says Cheshire farmer Phil Latham.

With more than one million people backing food standards by signing the NFU petition to protect them in law, we may yet force the Government’s hand on this issue, says Tim Farron, agriculture spokesman for the Liberal Democrats.

In Scotland, as in the rest of the UK, the Tories are preparing to sacrifice farmers on the Brexit altar by trying to prevent the Scottish Government from maintaining EU standards, says John Finnie, Green MSP for the Highlands and Islands.

I have absolutely no objection to high animal welfare standards, but selling them as a magical business opportunity for UK farmers after Brexit is beyond laughable, says Norman Bagley, head of policy at the Association of Independent Meat Suppliers (AIMS).