NFU President Tom Bradshaw has met with the new Defra Secretary of State Emma Reynolds MP on her first day in post.
The meeting covered a variety of issues, including the impact of the inheritance tax proposals on family farms, continued uncertainty over agri-environment schemes, and the cumulative impact of trade deals including the recent US deal and the upcoming GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) deal.
Tom said: 鈥淢embers will be pleased to hear that the Secretary of State took time on her very first day in office to meet with the NFU and discuss the key issues facing food and farming.
鈥淭his is a challenging time for our sector. We face an increasingly volatile global situation 鈥� both due to war and a changing climate 鈥� and our nation鈥檚 food security could not be more important.鈥�
鈥淚 look forward to working closely with her [Emma Reynolds] in the months ahead as we strive towards a better future for one of the nation鈥檚 most vital sectors 鈥� British food and farming.鈥�
NFU President Tom Bradshaw
Need for investment
Tom added: 鈥淔armers and growers want to produce more food, do more for the environment and grow their businesses, and to do this the sector needs investment. Given the economic and social importance of our food and farming sector, I鈥檓 hopeful that Ms Reynolds鈥� economic background will help drive this investment forward.
鈥淭he meeting was positive and we both agreed this was only the first step 鈥� more work is to be done. I look forward to working closely with her in the months ahead as we strive towards a better future for one of the nation鈥檚 most vital sectors 鈥� British food and farming.鈥�
