Lib Dems are best for farmers, Carmichael to tell Big Farm Debate
Speaking ahead of The Big Farm Debate in Ayr, Scottish Liberal Democrat MP and Chair of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Select Committee, Alistair Carmichael has said that his party will treat food security as a matter of national security and set out details of a number of policies that Scottish Liberal Democrats will take into the forthcoming election.
Mr Carmichael and Scottish Government minister for agriculture and connectivity Jim Fairlie are among those set to take part in the Scottish Farmer’s Big Farm Debate which takes place at the Craig Wilson Mart in Ayr from 7pm on Thursday.
At the forthcoming election, Scottish Liberal Democrats will commit to:
• Ringfence agriculture funding, protect support payments and move to 3-year funding deals to give farmers the confidence and certainty they need.
• Champion the scrapping of the family farm tax altogether, protecting generational farming, rural livelihoods and food security.
• Declare the Scottish Government’s support for Alistair Carmichael MP’s Food Supply Chain Fairness Bill to get fairer prices for farmers and food producers across the UK, bringing new checks and balances on the power of the big supermarkets.
• Support a new bespoke UK-EU customs union, making it easier for businesses to export to their main markets in the EU.
Speaking ahead of the event, Alistair Carmichael MP said:
“When it comes to food and drink, Scotland has got so much going for it. But nobody is getting a fair deal if people can’t afford to buy healthy food and producers can’t make a profit producing it.
“Farmers and fishers have had to contend with the Conservatives’ botched deal with the EU damaging their ability to export. It has ushered in barriers, red-tape and trade deals that pose a risk to our high standards. People feel let down by debacles including the SNP Government’s future farming scheme that became a lottery for the farmers it was supposed to help.
“Scottish Liberal Democrats will stand up for our farmers, crofters and fishers because we know they are the linchpins of our rural communities. Our plan will make it easier to put affordable, healthy and nutritious food on the table, produced to high welfare and environmental standards.
“Caring about our country must include caring about how we feed our country. Homegrown food is in the national interest and essential for our security. International uncertainty and President Trump’s destructive trade war should trigger a strategic increase in domestic food production. Our objective across the UK is to increase self-sufficiency by 10% to reduce our exposure to potential shocks and interruptions to the supply of food.
“This package of policies show why Liberal Democrats are the best choice for farmers and why everyone living and working in Scotland’s rural economy should back us on the peach, regional ballot.”