CLA launches campaign for rural support

ELECTION: Investment plea to candidates

Investing in the countryside should be a national priority after Brexit as existing European Union subsidies end, rural leaders have urged.

Long-term contracts for farmers to provide public services such as wildlife habitat, investment in the wider agricultural sector to make it more resilient, and funding for projects such as improving broadband coverage are all needed, they argue.

The Country Land and Business Association (CLA) is launching a Countryside Matters campaign at the Devon County Show to urge the public to show they care about the countryside and want to see investment in it.

The CLA wants politicians standing in the general election to show their support for investing in the countryside.

CLA president Ross Murray said: “The British countryside is the eighth wonder of the world and the envy of many. It provides us with a large proportion of the food we eat and the water we drink, it cleans the air we breathe and sustains a rich diversity of wildlife.

“These features bring benefits to every person who lives in, works in, or enjoys visiting our countryside.

“But there is risk once the UK leaves the EU.

“It is vital for the Government to treat farming, the rural economy and our landscapes as a public investment priority.”

Mr Murray said there was a need to develop a UK-wide policy on food, farming and environment that would replace the EU Common Agricultural Policy which provides around £3 billion in subsidies a year.