Rural areas ready for impact of cuts

The Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has been told it will face a cut in its budget of 162m as part of the Government's 6bn saving programme for the next year. The cut is the third-largest as a proportion of its overall spending of any Government department.

Regional Development Agencies such as Yorkshire Forward, which runs numerous funding and assistance programmes for farmers and rural businesses, have also been told to reduce spending with 300m of "lower value" spending to be cut from RDA spending across the country.

Details of the exact spending cuts to services are still being deliberated by ministers and civil servants but Defra has said that "selected programmes" it runs will face reductions in spending.

Defra also said that it would be limiting recruitment, reducing non-permanent staff and reducing spending on IT, estates and procurement.

Flood management too will be subjected to greater efficiencies, although a spokesman said that Defra would still commit to "maintaining increases in spending" for the area.

Defra will also have to reduce its dependency on consultants, something on which it spent more than half a billion pounds between 2007 and 2008.

Britain's farming industries reacted by repeating their long-standing call that food production must be at the heart of any economic recovery and not hamstrung by attempts to cut the deficit.

National Farmers' Union president Peter Kendall said he recognised the first priority of the Government must be to reduce the deficit and restore economic growth.

"There's no pretending that the farming sector can escape the impact of the massive cutback in public spending this country faces," said Mr Kendall. "The savings announced by the Chancellor and his team on Monday are only a taster for what is to come. But the second part of the headline statement, about the need to restore economic growth, is crucial too and that's where farmers and growers have a vital role to play. Competitiveness of the industry is central to this challenge. The NFU will be talking to and working with Government departments and agencies to ensure that whatever policies are implemented they enhance that competitiveness."

Mr Kendall said he expected the austerity measures could mean reduced regulatory burdens and he expected the Agricultural Wages Act to be repealed.

He added there were concerns and these would be raised with ministers. "I would have liked to see an express commitment in the coalition's programme to investment in long-term agricultural research and development."

CW 29/5/10