Mr Lee Dillon

Since my election, I have stood up for my farmers. We have been in fields together, we have marched together and we have lobbied together. Today, they stand with me. I am proud that my party has used this Opposition day debate to hold the Government to account for the latest shambles, which follow on from last year’s shambles. It really does seem that lessons have not been learned. My farmers cannot speak in the Chamber, but I can, and I want to make their voices heard. Their verdict is blunt. Tim Hayward, who has managed a 3,000 acre farm in South Fawley for over a decade, described the SFI as “flawed” and “not fit for purpose”, popular only because the sector is in such a dire circumstance that many farms have to embrace it to survive. His countryside stewardship agreement expires at the end of the year and, despite trying to secure a new SFI agreement, he has received no support. He faces the prospect of putting precious pockets of land—habitats that have taken years to establish—back into production. James, another experienced West Berkshire farmer, had an expiring SFI agreement and costed alternative business plans. As he put it, “I now regard the government as an unreliable trading partner.” George Brown, a farmer who farms Priors farm and is the chairman of the British Farming Union, told me that the six-hour window was simply impossible for a family farm to prepare for, let alone submit the precise land mapping, rotational forecasting and multi-layered action planning that an application needs. With the introduction of the family farm tax and the sudden closure of the SFI in 2025, farmers feel that the rural communities they represent are not understood. Farmers play a crucial role in rural life. From environmental stewardship to hosting community events that reduce isolation, clearing roads of snow in the dark winter months or lifting a villager’s car from a country ditch, they are the backbone of rural communities. If we do not back our farmers, we are not backing rural life. The farming road map rightly attempts to provide clarity, but, after September’s mess, distrust is as strong as ever. Nor can we look to the Conservative party for inspiration—Conservative Members may turn up in my seat for photo ops with farmers, but they have never apologised to them. I recognise that the Government inherited serious problems, but chaotic windows and abrupt closures have compounded those. I welcome the Minister’s commitment to work with the NFU and move away from a first come, first served basis. To conclude, may I ask the Minister three things? First, will he publish a clear timescale? As George Brown put it: “The Government created a funding race that left us all wondering when the starting gun would actually fire.” If the next window is to be different, the Department should open SFI27 early, with a phased arrangement starting on 1 April so that those who diligently prepared but were shut out get a fair second chance. Secondly, will the Minister ensure that the budget matches the number of agreements that are ending? More than 21,000 farm businesses have environmental agreements ending by March and only about 8,800 applied for SFI26. What transitional support will the Government provide to close that gap? Thirdly, the Government should use next week’s Budget for a clear injection of support and back the Liberal Democrats’ call for an extra £1 billion a year for farming. The Government have said that they are determined to rebuild trust across rural communities. If they take those steps, that could mark a turning point and give the custodians of our countryside the confidence and clarity they desperately need.