NFU President, Peter Kendall, spent eight hours on a fact finding tour
of Holderness yesterday (26 March) seeing for himself how farmers are
fighting to protect some of the best agricultural land in the country
from the threat of flooding.
During his visit he was accompanied by Richard Percy, a Hertfordshire
farmer, who is on the board of the Environment Agency.
From a national perspective, Peter and Richard were able to outline the
scale of the challenges farmers face, but on hearing just some of the
problems being experienced on the ground, Peter pledged to step up
lobbying activity on a number of fronts.
Setting the scene, Peter said the fundamental issue was a failure of
government to recognise the importance and value of productive
agriculture to this country. "The cards are stacked against us from the
outset," he said. "Not only do we have two regulators to deal with –
Defra and the Environment Agency – but Natural England also has a role
to play.
"And if you look at the aims, objectives and targets of these
organisations it's clear that the pendulum has swung too far towards
environmental protection and habitat creation and away from enabling
efficient, productive and competitive food production – especially when
agriculture is already rising to the challenge of producing more while
impacting less on the environment.
"The way that government departments are judged is by their performance
against so called Public Service Agreements or PSAs. The only PSA set
for Defra, which after all is the Department for the Environment, Food
and Rural Affairs, relates only to biodiversity.
"Not only that, but one of the key influences on their policies – the
EU's Habitats Directive – was formulated in the early 90s when food
security was not the issue it is now. The effect of this is to establish
a framework where food production will always play second fiddle to
environmental conservation and habitat creation – something that is very
hard to overcome at national, let alone local level."
During his visit, Peter met farmers from across Holderness and the East
Riding. They left him in no doubt as to the extent of the problems faced
and the growing frustration of farmers and local residents alike.
A key issue discussed was the way that the Environment Agency budget is
allocated. Farmers claim that millions are spent on surveys, consultant
reports and consultation leaving little for actual implementation. For
example Peter was told that £1m has already been spent drawing up flood
management plans for the River Hull – and these are now in shreds
following a challenge by East Riding of Yorkshire Council.
Farmers also expressed their concerns about the 'overly complicated and
costly' approach adopted by the Agency. This, farmers say, often means
that cheaper, more practical solutions are dismissed in favour of a very
small number of hugely expensive projects.
"In Holderness, farmers and local residents are united in calling on the
Environment Agency to change its priorities and take a more joined-up
and practical approach," said Preston farmer, David Williams, who hosted
part of the visit.
"But in most respects, it's like banging your head against a brick wall
and listening to Peter and Richard, it's easy to see why. It was a very
useful visit and I think we have provided some good ammunition for NFU
lobbying work both in Westminster and Brussels. Obviously, anything the
NFU can do to bring about the sea change we need in government thinking
is more than welcome."
Commenting after his trip, Peter said there was certainly a lot to do on
many fronts.
"We really need to challenge the Habitats Directive – both in Brussels
and here in the UK where is has been interpreted in a very rigid way,"
he said. "We also need to challenge the value assigned to agricultural
land when possible flood protection schemes are subjected to the
government's Cost Benefit Analysis.
"Finally, given the state of the nation's economy, we also need to
explore imaginative ways of working together with local people, local
authorities and other local bodies, as well as looking at how a range of
community solutions can be encouraged."
Richard Percy added that he would be taking many of the comments raised
back to the Environment Agency. "It's clear for example that
communications could be improved and there are issues around the way the
Agency works with Internal Drainage Boards in the area," he said.
"However the Agency and its staff have to work within the parameters set
by the Secretary of State and farmers need to understand was is
negotiable and what is not.
"One issue however I also intend to raise is the area's lack of a
farming representative on the Regional Flood Defence Committee – as this
is something I feel needs addressing."
Summing up Peter said: "It was been a very useful trip for us and we are
certainly going away with a lot to think about. It's clear that many of
the issues discussed are being experienced by other farming communities
around the country, so the problem is a significant one. There's no
doubt that there is no quick fix, but it's important we keep up
sustained pressure across all fronts and back up our arguments with real
life examples, and that's where visits like this are vital."
