Helen Morgan discusses farming economics with Shawbury NFU branch

North Shropshire MP Helen Morgan has met up with the Shawbury branch of the National Farmers Union at a roundtable in Myddle, to discuss a wide-ranging series of topics in the agricultural industry.

The state of the economy and future of the farming sector was a consistent topic, with ever higher interest rates and levels of inflation harming investment prospects and making it difficult to turn a profit each year.

The group also discussed the implementation of the new payment scheme, in particular the Sustainable Farming Incentive. Take-up rates have been low, with the finances of the programme not making sense for many of North Shropshire’s farming community, again harming the economic outlook for farmers.

Another gripe raised was regarding compensation levels for cattle farmers hit by a TB outbreak. Current compensation schemes only reimburse farmers around £1400 for each cow – despite the wholesale value of the animal now consistently over £2000, leading to very large losses for those impacted by the disease.

The MP has pledged to take up their case and raise these issues.

Helen Morgan, MP for North Shropshire, said, "It is always a high priority of mine to spend time with farmers and those running rural businesses to discuss the challenges and opportunities they face.

“It has been a really tough few years for the industry, from having subsidies slashed and replaced by a botched new payment scheme which simply doesn’t work, to facing ever greater financial challenges as the cost of doing business rises. This has been compounded by disastrous new trade deals that don't provide a level playing field for our farmers.

“I will be taking their case to Parliament and continuing to campaign for our farming sector, which remains the backbone of our rural communities and local economy.”