Sarah Gibson

In Wiltshire, farming is at the heart of our rural economy, our landscape and our community. Farmers do not just produce the food on our tables, but support local jobs and businesses, and play a crucial role in protecting and restoring the natural environment. Farmers in Wiltshire are not asking for special treatment; they are merely asking for the certainty that every business needs. I recently spoke to Anna, a livestock vet in my constituency who works with farmers across Wiltshire, and she put the problem very simply: farming businesses plan years ahead, not months ahead. When support schemes change without warning, farmers cannot make decisions about environmental improvements because they simply do not know what resources they will have available. Wiltshire’s mixed agricultural landscape, which combines arable farming and dairy and livestock businesses, is exactly the sort of environment where sustainable farming practices thrive. However, if a farm does not know what support will be available, it cannot confidently plan for the future. In Wiltshire, we have already seen what can be achieved when farmers are supported to work alongside nature. The Bremhill Vales Farmers Group brings together 50 farms covering 5,000 hectares between Chippenham, Calne and Lyneham. It works with the Environment Agency and Wiltshire Wildlife Trust to improve water quality and reduce flood risk through natural management. Those farmers know that being productive can sit alongside environmental stewardship, but only with the right tailored support. As well as the SFI debacle, I will raise a couple of other things that are affecting my farmers. One is the rigidity around the machinery grant; the Government application windows are so tight. Another issue is how complex and difficult the guidance can be—even veterinary professionals, who deal with those programmes regularly, struggle to navigate the guidance and the application process. I looked through the welfare pathway website recently with a local vet. I found the forms difficult to locate and the timelines unclear, and minor administrative errors meant that access to support was lost entirely. If the experts struggle to navigate the system, Ministers should ask themselves how easy and accessible the system is to a busy family farm. Wiltshire’s farmers are ready to play their part; they deserve a Government who are ready to play theirs. I have two questions for the Minister. What assurance can he give farmers in my constituency that when they commit to long-term environmental improvements, this Government are willing to provide the long-term funding certainty needed to support that work? Will the Minister commit to publishing a clear, single-page timeline that sets out the application windows, the eligibility criteria and the payment timeline for the farming scheme well in advance, so that farmers can make the long-term business decisions that modern agriculture requires?