Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Scottish MPs lobby Treasury for extension to farm funding guarantee

The MPs say rising costs mean Scottish farmers need Westminster to extend its funding guarantee beyond 2024.
The MPs say rising costs mean Scottish farmers need Westminster to extend its funding guarantee beyond 2024.

A trio of Scottish MPs has written to the Treasury calling for long-term certainty over farm funding for Scotland.

The MPs – Andrew Bowie, David Duguid and John Lamont – have written to Exchequer Secretary Helen Whatley asking for a meeting to discuss financial support for farmers north of the border.

They want the UK Government to extend its current commitment to keep farm funding at the same level during this Parliament to 2024/25.

The MPs say Westminster allocates around £620 million to the Scottish Government for farming every year, however increasing production costs mean fewer farm businesses will turn a profit without guaranteed support.

“The UK Government committed to 2024 because there will be a new system of support by 2028,” said Andrew Bowie, MP for West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine.

“However, no one at that time envisaged the war in Ukraine and the impact that would have on everything farmers need, from diesel to fertiliser to animal feed.

Andrew Bowie MP.

“We’re asking HM Treasury to make one change to protect our food supply at an uncertain time.”

John Lamont, MP for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk, said extending the payment commitment from the UK Government would boost confidence in the farming sector.

He added: “It’s not just about business; it’s about protecting rural communities which depend on the jobs, produce and natural advantages they provide.”

Banff and Buchan MP, David Duguid, said results from the Scottish farm business income survey for 2020 showed most farms would have made a loss without subsidy support.

He said: “The industry is modernising at a rapid pace. Diversifying and decarbonising is a major part of what they do.

“But we need to protect food security, and this one change will help farm businesses manage their finances.”

David Duguid MP.

A Treasury spokesman said: “We have committed to maintain the annual budget to farmers throughout this Parliament, in each part of the UK.

“We are providing the Scottish Government with the same cash funding each year as under the 2019 Common Agricultural Policy.

“On top of this we are extending the uplifts recommended by the Bew Review so that overall the Scottish Government is receiving just over £620 million each year of this Parliament to spend on farmers and land managers.”

Conversation