Cutting agriculture budget could be 'catastrophic' for nature-friendly farming, CLA warns
On eve of spending review, CLA and nature groups join forces to warn of consequences
The CLA and several high-profile nature groups have joined forces to warn the Chancellor that cutting the agriculture budget will have grave consequences for the environment.
On the eve of the spending review, a joint letter has been sent to farming minister Daniel Zeichner outlining the impact a reduced budget will have on nature.
It warns that any reduction in the budget will be "catastrophic" to the government’s aims, arguing: "Many of the environmental features present in the countryside and enjoyed by the public will be under threat and will disappear. This would be a poor legacy for this government."
Groups including the RSPB, National Trust, Soil Association and the Nature Friendly Farming Network have signed the letter, which outlines how the organisations are "deeply concerned about the rumoured cuts to the agricultural budget in the upcoming spending review".
'Undo years of progress'
CLA President Victoria Vyvyan said:
“If funding for sustainable farming schemes is cut, government won’t just abandon nature - it will abandon its word.
“The Sustainable Farming Incentive is working - for farmers, for nature, for the public, and for the Treasury. It’s bringing back wildlife, cleaning up rivers, and restoring the health of our soil."
Take that funding away, and farmers will be pushed back to intensive methods - forced to undo years of progress
“Nature will suffer as well as farmers, and on the environment, it will go against everything government claims to agree with."
The spending review will take place tomorrow (11 June). Stay tuned for full CLA reaction and analysis.