The government has been told to end the uncertainty over what Brexit will mean for UK farming and take a collaborative approach to negotiations, the NFU has said.
With negotiations due to begin next week, the farming union said it is time the UK government took a 'collaborative and consensual' approach to Brexit.
The group has urged the government to work with a wide constituency of interested parties to get the best outcome for the UK, one that best represents the views and interests of the country at large.
Speaking at the opening of Cereals 2017, NFU President Meurig Raymond said: “We are still a whole year on from the Brexit referendum, little closer to knowing what future Brexit holds for us.
“We don’t know what our future trading relationship will be with the EU – our biggest trading partner by some way in agri-food products; we don’t know how a future immigration system in the UK will work, and how farmers can be sure they’ll continue to have access to the highly specialised workforce required in many sectors; and we don’t know how public policy will support agriculture in future in mitigating volatility, improving productivity and delivering environmental goods once we are no longer subject to the Common Agricultural Policy.”
'Frictionless access'
The NFU’s key Brexit asks are the delivery of the right post-Brexit trade deal with continued tariff-free and frictionless access to the Single Market.
Other asks include a domestic agricultural policy suited to Britain, access to a competent and reliable workforce and a regulatory framework that supports productive agriculture alongside protecting the environment and public health.
Mr Raymond continued: “We will strongly make the case to government for a Brexit that maintains strong economic links with the EU, centred on tariff-free trade and a system of customs control that allows goods to flow freely between the UK and EU, whether through a sophisticated customs agreement, or even continued membership of the Customs Union.
“Furthermore, government must maintain current levels of public investment in agriculture to ensure we are resilient and productive in future. And while there is a desire to take control of our borders and our sovereignty, this must not come at an economic cost that damages farming and undermines the amazing value we deliver for the British people.”
Mr Raymond said the NFU would also continue to press the new Secretary of State, Michael Gove, to support British farming through other measures.
These include a commitment to continue the 25-year TB eradication strategy, tackling the increasing problem of rural crime, promoting British food at home and abroad and plant-protection regulation based on robust scientific evidence.
