Labour under pressure to rule out cuts to farming budget

Defra ministers faced a barrage of questions on the new Labour government’s plans for the agricultural budget during a heated debate in parliament.

The Labour government has not yet confirmed whether there will be cuts to the farming budget, which is worth about £3.7bn to UK farmers, with assurances that decisions will only come after the spending review, which will conclude in October.

Departmental budgets, including spending on farming, will be confirmed through this process, and chancellor Rachel Reeves will make her Budget announcement on Wednesday 30 October. 

See also: Fury as Defra reveals £358m underspend over three years

But Defra ministers stressed Labour “will not upset the apple cart” and it remains fully committed to continuing the rollout of the Environmental Land Management (ELM) schemes in England.

Meanwhile, there is a strong call from opposition MPs to ensure that unspent funds are retained within the sector to support farmers and environmental initiatives.

The first Defra oral questions session was held in parliament on Thursday 12 September since Labour won the general election in July.

Defra farming and environmental ministers came under attack from opposition MPs who repeatedly asked if Labour will rule out any real-terms cuts the farming budget.

£358m underspend

Alistair Carmichael, MP for Orkney and Shetland, and the new chairman of the influential Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Efra) Select committee, urged the government to rollover £358m in underspent funds from the previous Conservative government into future budgets.

He pointed out that when Labour was in opposition, it said any underspend should be rolled over into future years.

“The problems with the uptake of ELM schemes have been at the heart of a significant departmental underspend,” said Mr Carmichael.

“No fair-minded individual would blame the current government for that, but if that money disappears back into the Treasury, never to be seen again on farms, that blame will be attached to the current government.”

Defra parliamentary under-secretary of state Mary Creagh responded by saying no decisions on the farming budget have been taken.

“Spending on the department’s priorities will be confirmed as part of the spending review, but we will not be overturning the apple cart, and we are fully committed to ELM schemes,” she added.

£100m cut?

Shadow Defra secretary and Conservative MP for North East Cambridgeshire Steve Barclay asked if the Labour government will rule out cuts to the farming budget, referencing media reports that suggest a possible £100m cut in the nature-friendly farming budget for England.

He stressed that farmers need clarity to plan their businesses.

Environment minister Emma Hardy pointed out that it was the previous Conservative government that underspent the farming budget, and noted that decisions on the budget will be made during the spending review.