No-deal Brexit will hit our farmers hard

The last few weeks at Westminster before the summer recess were quite surreal.

With the installation of Boris Johnson as prime minister, it was quite nice to get back to Perthshire and get on with normal constituency business.

One of the first visits was to Perth Show, which was a roaring success and a great chance to catch up with farmers, food producers and other local business owners.

The‘B word’was definitely on people’s lips, whether the B stood for Boris or for Brexit.

There was an absolute feeling of trepidation amongst those who we rely on to get produce from field to fork.

For them, Brexit or indeed Boris, represents a threat to their ability to get food onto our shelves in a timely fashion and at a decent price.

We already know that if a no-deal scenario should come to pass, our beef farmers will face a 65 per cent tariff on their high-quality Scottish beef.

For many, this would mean a huge chunk of their sales vanishing overnight, as it would be almost impossible to compete with farmers from other markets who wouldn’t face the same tariff.

This is obviously something which would work both ways, meaning that goods coming from the EU market could also be considerably more expensive.

This isn’t scaremongering, it is the stark reality of what a no-deal Brexit will mean.

As I have done consistently since 2016, I will vote to represent the majority in my constituency who voted to remain in the European Union.

Since then, thousands of you have emailed and written to my office to share your desire to either remain in the EU or at the very least, remain in the single market, and I will always vote to respect that position.

I recently wrote to every single Scottish Tory MP to ask them to respect the wishes of their party leader, Ruth Davidson, who is on record as saying she would not vote to allow a no-deal Brexit.

Interestingly, not a single response has been forthcoming.

Over the coming weeks I will get the opportunity to get out to some of the smaller villages and hamlets that I might not always be able to get to in the winter months.

If you need to speak to me at one of my advice surgeries, please contact my office on 01738 639598 and we will advise of where the closest surgery is to you.