Brexit has largely dominated commentary following the release of the parties’ manifestos over the last two weeks.  The Conservative manifesto is the last major one to be released, on Wednesday 18th May.  As you would expect, it is full of “…huge ambitions…”, as it states, for our farming industry.

Revealingly, it includes the statement on page 26:  “We want to provide stability to farmers as we leave the EU and set up new frameworks for supporting food production and stewardship of the countryside.  So we will continue to commit the same cash total in funds for farm support until the end of the parliament.”

They go on to add:  “We will work with farmers, food producers and environmental experts ….. to devise a new agri-environment system, to be introduced in the following parliament”.

This is good news.  Clearly the Conservatives will almost certainly win the election, and their manifesto is unequivocal in its commitment to making the same cash funds available for farm support. Of course the way in which it is distributed will probably change, but at least the funds will be there, as they will for a “new” agri-environment policy.

This potential policy is referred to in more detail, in particular in the support they will give to Natural England, for instance in the provision of technical expertise to farmers, to improve the environment “…on a landscape scale…”, including by planting hedges and building dry stone walls.   Improving “natural” flood management and water course improvement is also referred to, but really only in passing.

Finally, they commit to further controls on the export of live animals for slaughter, to “enhance” the provision of public services in rural areas, and to give a free vote in parliament on the future of the Hunting Act.

You may remember back in February 2016 that Liz Truss was the Defra Secretary.  She launched the idea of a “25 year plan for food and farming”, which was to be published “shortly”.  Strangely, I don’t ever remember seeing this…

So should the manifesto be treated with the same pinch of salt as other statements of intent by government ministers?  Well, a manifesto commitment is a commitment from a whole party, and is supposed to be a summary of their plans for implementation, should they be democratically elected. So this should be a whole lot nearer to a real “promise” than a simple ministerial statement.