Sir Bill Wiggin, Member of Parliament for North Herefordshire, contributed in a debate on Delinked Payments in Agriculture that took place earlier this week.
Sir Bill stuck up for the 88,000 farmers across the UK who may face lower incomes.
Figures from DEFRA suggest that the smallest farms will receive a reduction of 50% in direct support, with this number rising to 70% for the largest farms.
Bill said:
“New schemes will provide public money for public goods instead of direct payments.
This comes at a particularly difficult time. The past 18 months have been the wettest since 1836, meaning many crop yields will be significantly reduced this summer.
It is no easier for livestock farmers. The lambing period has been incredibly difficult, and in addition there is very likely a new introduction of Bluetongue Virus into the UK.
The incomes of about 2,000 farmers in my constituency may be down because, as the Minister said earlier, more people are eligible for a piece of the funding stream.
The Minister called it a cake. I would have perhaps described it more as a custard pie being rubbed into our farmers’ faces.
The ELM scheme does not increase payments to farmers; it simply redistributes them.
Therefore, I would ask the Minister to get his Majesty’s Revenues and Customs to look at the incomes of the 88,000 farmers, and make sure that they are not falling.
We need to use the Treasury much more cleverly, we need better tax breaks, rather than handouts, and we need to look at the cost of red diesel, because that is a direct way of subsidising food production.”
Since the debate, Sir Bill has written to DEFRA to inquire about the laying and maintenance of hedges, and has also written to HMRC to ask them to look into farmers’ incomes to ensure that they do not go down.
Sir Bill’s contribution in the debate can be watched here.
Promoted by Alex Snell of behalf of Sir Bill Wiggin, both of 8 Corn Square, Leominster, Herefordshire, HR8 8LR 