Call for legal action over rail and NI funding
Mr Price asked: 'If the change was made without consultation or adequate reasoning, what legal hurdles would the Welsh Government face in bringing a case and what remedies might be available?'
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Cambrian News
3 hours ago
- Cambrian News
Call for legal action over rail and NI funding
Mr Price asked: 'If the change was made without consultation or adequate reasoning, what legal hurdles would the Welsh Government face in bringing a case and what remedies might be available?'
Scotsman
4 hours ago
- Scotsman
'We don't feel valued' - Farmer angst over political uncertainty at Royal Highland Show
Inheritance tax and trade deal contribute to general sense of being 'well down the pecking order' Sign up to our daily newsletter – Regular news stories and round-ups from around Scotland direct to your inbox Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... With hundreds of thousands of people walking through the gates to celebrate Scotland's largest agricultural show, you would think farmers felt supported. But that wasn't the general feeling among members of the farming community attending the Royal Highland Show in 2025, a year that has seen political change bring an uncertain future for many in the sector across the UK. Political promises Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Rural affairs secretary Mairi Gougeon opened the show with promise sounding statements, including the Scottish Government's decision to reject climate change advice to cut livestock numbers by almost 30 per cent by 2040. However, Tory MSPs attending the show, including Tim Eagle and Finlay Carson, were quick to point out cattle herds and sheep flocks are in decline anyway, with little to no mention of how policy will protect numbers dwindling further. MSPs, including Tim Eagle (second from left) at a political debate at the NFUS stand at the Royal Highland Show | Katharine Hay Ms Gougeon also announced £14m will be available for farmers to apply for funding for the Future Farmers Investment scheme. Some in the industry, however, felt this will only back a few hundred businesses and will instead just 'get hopes up.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Farmers on the ground were fairly dismissive of the SNP politicians bearing gifts, with some in the showground accusing ministers of paying lip service. Uncertain future for next generation Ewan McCall, who farms Luing cattle near Golspie, in the north east Highlands, spoke to The Scotsman about the uncertainty he feels in the sector and for his children, who he hopes will have a future in agriculture. Ewan McCall, who farms Luing cattle in the north-east Highlands | Katharine Hay 'It has been a tough year,' he said. 'We have had a lot of pressures from government: inheritance tax, the ongoing problems with tree planting and the grab for land for that. 'There are the trade deal issues as well. There's so much uncertainty at the moment that we don't feel valued. We don't really know what the future will be for the next generation.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Mr McCall said the declining beef herds, if left to continue, will impact the wider agricultural industry. 'We don't want the cattle numbers to drop any further, nor sheep numbers,' he said. 'We need to think about food security at a government level and take it seriously. We are in a very uncertain world at the moment.' On a positive note, the farmer said prices for cattle are currently good. But it's a small bonus. 'There are mixed emotions,' Mr McCall added. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'Our personal businesses have been okay. But it's the ongoing background pressures that probably have been putting a dampener on things. 'I am positive about the future but I would like to have more certainty about how things are going to progress and what the future holds for the next generation, for my kids.' Real impact of 'family-farm tax' Farming unions said they are going to keep up the pressure on UK ministers to revise or u-turn on the 'family farm' tax proposals. However, Secretary of State for Scotland Ian Murray, who attended the show on Thursday, said the party will not budge. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad It is one of the many worries looming over the farming industry, including for Mr McColl. 'The difficulty is if I was to die early, my kids would be faced with massive inheritance tax,' he said. 'The farm would have to be sold and they wouldn't get the chance to farm and that's something I feel really strongly about. In that respect, it's not good at all.' Laura Needhin, farmer in Aberdeenshire, echoed Mr McCall's concerns. Laura Needhin, a sheep farmer in Aberdeenshire | Katharine Hay 'There's a lot of uncertainty ahead,' she said. 'I don't think the Labour government, in particular, are backing farmers enough. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'Inheritance tax for lots of small farms that have moved through families for 200 hundred years are going to be gone. It's a big worry for a lot of farmers.' At the opening of this year's show, the National Farmers Union Scotland (NFUS) called on the Scottish Government to promise a multi-annual funding commitment for the farming sector. Lack of detail on future of subsidies to support farmers It comes after years of uncertainty on how Scotland's subsidy system will work post-EU with only half of the scheme confirmed a decade after Brexit. Sheep farmer and Scotland's Rural College (SRUC) lecturer Heather Kerr said while price stability in the sector is relatively good at the moment, 'it's always something you worry about because, long-term, we don't have a huge amount of information with what's going on with subsidies.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Heather Kerr, a sheep farmer and lecturer at the SRUC | Katharine Hay Ms Kerr added: 'It's difficult to plan so that we can be in a good place when the changes come as they are not things that you can just change overnight.' The college lecturer said while the employment rate for students with rural skills is high, the barrier for new entrants into farming still remains strong for those without the cash for land. At a debate held in the NFUS stand at the show, promises were made from politicians of all political stripes to do more to encourage new entrants and young farmers in the industry. A young farmer's outlook Young farmer Alice Haig, who farms with her dad in Forfar, pointed to multiple challenges the younger generation face in the sector. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'We're not as supported as people think we are. There's a bit of a rift in between people in towns and rural folk, and I think that's come on since this UK government has come in power.' She said the reality of farming doesn't always appeal to her peers, which could explain labour shortages in the sector. 'Sometimes younger people think it's a nine to five but it's not,' Ms Haig said. 'It's hard to get a job that's got set hours in farming. It's hard to make a good amount of money in farming. It's also hard to get reasonably priced housing in rural areas. It's cheaper to live in towns and cities, you get better paid, you can plan for the future. So I think farming suffers a bit from that. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Laura Haig, who farms with her father in Forfar, Angus | Katharine Hay 'It's not just young farmers. I think the lack of support that farming is getting as a whole means we are not supported as young farmers and we don't see it as a prospect that we might once have done.' Agriculture 'well down the pecking order' Elsewhere, farmers shared the undervalued sentiment. Gordon McConochie , a farmer from Grantown-on-spey in the Cairngorms National Park, said agriculture seems to be 'well down the pecking order' when it comes to other land management such as species reintroductions. Gordon McConachie, who was showing Aberdeen Angus and Highland Cattle at the Royal Highland Show | Katharine Hay He said the increase in raptors has been 'phenomenal', but the impact on the farming community and other species are often overlooked. 'I have no faith in any of the politicians to do anything radical. They seem to be scared to venture into agriculture. We are the whipping boys of the country at the moment. 'Our farming leaders need to be stronger.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Retired farmer Andrew McConchie, who ran a livestock farm in Dumfries and Galloway, said: 'I represent hill farming. The only thing the governments seem to be interested in is carbon capture. Retired farmer Andrew McConchie, who farmed in the south-west of Scotland and represents hill farming | Katharine Hay 'My grandson started farming now, I retired ten years ago, I definitely wouldn't change places with him. You just don't know whether you're wanted or not.
Powys County Times
5 hours ago
- Powys County Times
New bluetongue rules 'impossible burden' on farmers
The new rules for bluetongue would place an 'impossible cost burden' on farmers according to a Powys MP. MP for Montgomeryshire and Glyndwr, Steve Witherden, said that he is concerned about the potential spread of the disease but that it could not be at the cost of farmers who cross the Wales-England border. The new rules would require sheep crossing into Wales to be tested for the blue tongue virus, regardless of whether they are vaccinated, which can cost anywhere from £40-£70 per animal. This could lead to huge bills with one farmer telling the County Times that it would cost him as much as £25,000 to move his flock. According to NFU Cymru, over 550 farms lie in both England and Wales, with many of them being in Powys, whose eastern edge makes up about half of the 160-mile border between the two countries. 'I am deeply concerned about the potential spread of bluetongue and believe we need a workable solution to contain its spread, and protect livestock and farmers,' said Mr Witherden. 'I realise that there are a great many aspects of the management of this disease to consider by DEFRA and Welsh Government, but the rules they collectively impose must not make farming life impossible for farmers with cross border farms. 'Is it really sensible that a farmer has to test an animal because it moves from one field to another on their farm, when that field border is the Welsh/English border?' Help support trusted local news Sign up for a digital subscription now: As a digital subscriber you will get Unlimited access to the Oswestry Advertizer website Advert-light access Reader rewards Mr Witherden said he would be 'strongly encouraging Welsh Government and DEFRA to reach a sensible and workable solution for both cross border farms and for transporting animals where the road passes from Wales'. He added: 'I am continuing to stay in regular contact with the FUW, NFU Cymru and NFU in London. I will be listening to concerns and pressing for sensible and affordable solutions to help farmers deal with the practical reality of cross border farms and the costs and rules associated with testing. 'We also need fast access to inoculation for livestock. 'It is paramount that we have a practical set of clear and well communicated rules and that we take all the precautions necessary to ensure that this disease does not spread.'
