UKIP Manifesto - Farming and the Countryside

Transcription

1 UKIP Manifesto - Farming and the Countryside Devolved Administrations Wales Introduction UKIP is committed to EU withdrawal and produced an agricultural manifesto at the last General Election for farming in an independent Britain, free of EU Common Agricultural Policy restraints. It is not possible to offer this manifesto for the Devolved Administration elections as the UK will still be a EU Member State and subject to the CAP and Brussels control, regardless of the outcome of the vote. In this manifesto, therefore, UKIP has to offer policies for agriculture that are compliant with CAP rules. Our intention is, however, to shift the emphasis away from bureaucracy and subservience, and towards the needs of farmers and the environment, utilising the full range of powers that have been devolved, particularly in wildlife management best practice and law. UKIP recognises the vital role that a socially aware, export-focussed and vibrant agricultural sector plays in all three devolved administrations, and will do all it can to ensure that agricultural production and trade is encouraged and supported as a crucial industry. Several of our policies are common to all three Devolved Administrations but there are also individual variations. Our scope is restricted by Brussels control, but nevertheless we offer a significant improvement on the status quo. Underpinning our policies is UKIP s desire to see sound science prevail over subjective emotion in any discussion on agricultural or environmental practices in the devolved administrations. For example, on wildlife management issues, UKIP will support the Welfare Equation method of comparing the degree and duration of suffering within all methods of management and predator control in the killing and capturing of animals, together with moorland species management priorities, in order to resolve existing costly and damaging management conflicts. Our policies seek to offer a framework under which agriculture and best practice environmental management can thrive together, and use the most humane and effective methods. In all three devolved administrations international targets on biodiversity have not been met, despite CAP Pillar 1 and 2 funding and strict Government regulations. Europe s wildlife remains in crisis, according to statistics from the European Commission s latest assessment of nature, published on Friday, October 2. UKIP does not agree that the blame can be placed on intensive agriculture, and this manifesto addresses the gross management neglect of Government advisors and conservation bodies as the real reasons for failure. UKIP is carefully watching the evolving reform of wildlife management law to see if it will redress some of this situation. However, we are concerned that

2 2 the current situation continues to deteriorate, with currently some 600 species now considered to be at risk. We believe this is because of the removal of previously successful traditional management roles in the agricultural and environment sectors. Meeting the year round resource requirements of our most precious native and visiting species, is essential to preserve and enhance our rich biodiverse and productive natural capital and traditional land management practices, which have delivered this over generations. UKIP s recognises the benefit of best practice wildlife management in sustaining nationally important landscapes, enhancing viable agricultural production and delivering for wildlife all year round habitat, food and water and protection from predators, human disturbance and disease, together with the vitally important balances between predator and prey species. UKIP will encourage the existing mostly free to the public private sector wildlife management services paid for by participants of activities. For example, scent hounds, gamekeepers, gillies, and terrier-men, to restore and secure the sustainable management of the Uplands, which represents some 50% of the land area of the British Isles, and provide high quality managed access for the public. UKIP remains committed to producing a long-term plan for UK agriculture. which would require independence from the EU to implement, whilst recognising the value of trade to the devolved administrations in particular. We would take advantage of any status we achieve after the election to promote this plan to demonstrate what benefits genuine independence could bring to the agricultural sector, for example in superb marketing, control of labelling law and in local procurement. CAP was favouring EU countries and disadvantaging the UK by at least 3.5bn per year. Far from being feather bedded, British farmers have been seriously underfunded. The real problem, buried away in various dense European Commission and Parliamentary reports, was the extent to which all other Governments in the European Union had exploited the labyrinthine rules of the Common Agricultural Policy, and their own tax systems, to give their farmers the maximum possible support; whereas the UK Government had consistently done the very opposite. To a far greater extent than realised, the playing field had been savagely tilted against them, not by Brussels but by their own Government Extract from the Death of British Agriculture by Richard North. This situation remains broadly the same today for example the EU Water Directive comes with a 10bn cost over two years.

3 3 Wales Facts about farming in Wales Total population ,092,000 Proportion UK populaton 5% GVA bn Percentage UK GVA 3.6% Total agricultural area (thousand ha) 1,812 TAA as % of total land area 84% % of TAA as: Grass 66% Crops & fallow 5% Rough grazing 25% Other 4% Total Income from Farming m % UK cattle 11% % UK Sheep 29% % UK pigs 1% % UK Poultry 12% Labour force (farmers, spouses and employees) 59,600 CAP budget 14-20: Pillar 1 (millions) 1,796 Average Pillar 1 payment per ha 206 Pillar 2 (millions) 284 Modulation rate 15% Total RDP spend (Pillar 2 + co-financing + modulation) Pillar 1 per year 256m Pillar 2 per year 128m

4 4 1. UKIP will instigate a detailed audit to reveal the full extent of financial waste in the administration costs and deployment of CAP funds in Wales. We are astonished that mistakes made there, in 2005, to area based payments have not been learned from. 2. UKIP will simplify the qualification and evaluation criteria for CAP funding to meeting the specific objectives of Welsh agriculture first and foremost. UKIP believes that the CAP Greening rules have been unnecessarily gold-plated in Wales. We will review this with the expectation of relaxing as much legislation as we can. 3. UKIP believes there should be an outcomes-based approach to CAP compliance and that farmers, commoners and graziers should be supported by Government rather than threatened with penalties. 4. The present Modulation rate of Pillar 1 to Pillar 2 in Wales is 15%. UKIP would maintain it at this rate only if we were satisfied these funds are used to deliver better outcomes for the most socially and environmentally beneficial producers in Scottish agriculture. 5. UKIP would cease providing grants for the construction of free range egg production units in Wales. UKIP does not believe that taxpayers money should be used on market-distorting interventions and proof of increasing demand in a sector should be a pre-requisite prior to business investment. 6. UKIP supports the introduction of Voluntary Coupled Support for the environmentally strategic beef and sheep sectors in Wales. UKIP will make these payments conditional upon wildlife management and stocking rate criteria determined locally in consultation with Land Custodian, Commoner and Grazier representatives. 7. UKIP would ensure that Commoners and Graziers Rights and Regulations were upheld under the Law, requiring local management decisions, and provide new legislation for Commoners and Graziers to assist in local management decisions and actions. Land custodians together with the Commoners and Graziers must work with each other, and be totally flexible within local grazing management decisions, to meet the wide variety of seasonal weather and biodiversity demands. 8. UKIP will review the selection criteria of the organisations and individuals who are paid to advise the Welsh Government on environmental matters. We wish to create an independent regulatory body made up of leading independent practitioners with direct input from those with extensive, practical and local experience. We place a higher value on local experience than the

5 theoretical opinions of single issue pressure groups or young graduates. Farming and countryside management practitioners should form 60% of advisors We would, in the first instance, require this regulatory body to license or appoint local wildlife managers in Wales. The local wildlife manager network will be financed from existing RDP fund headings. We would propose legislation to prevent these very important animal welfare roles from being disrupted by animal rights protestors. 10. UKIP is concerned that currently it is not compulsory to report traffic related deer accidents as it is for domestic animals. These deer related accidents are estimated at 70,000 in the UK each year and cause substantial suffering to injured deer. We will require the local wildlife managers to respond, report, search for, locate and dispatch these and other injured or incapacitated deer, including those which arise under normal management. 11. UKIP supports the wide benefits of best practice predator control and management in meeting biodiversity targets throughout the British Isles. As CAP funds have failed to improve or provide the rich biodiversity expected by the people, UKIP will therefore require, under licence, predator control of all key predator species, including the American crayfish, seals and buzzards, by local wildlife managers, as a condition of the receipt of CAP payments. 12. UKIP supports a science-first approach to bovine TB control and does not believe that the badger requires any special treatment compared to any other non-endangered mammal. We will adopt a strict biosecurity-based approach, with pre-and post-movement testing controls, and notification requirements for bovine and non-bovine reactors. The local wildlife manager network will be utilised all year round and empowered to search for, track, locate and humanely dispatch the old, sick and disease carrying badgers, which have been driven away from badger sets and territory by dominant younger badgers, towards farms and livestock, and otherwise act as extreme vectors of bovine TB. In the advanced stages of this very serious disease these badgers carry as much a one and a half million bacilli in a tea spoon full of urine, and are the proven carriers of TB in 90% of cattle infections. TB is endemic to the badger population, so that the steps described above present the best and most economical means of ensuring that Wales brings this disease under control in the shortest possible time and at the lowest cost. Wildlife managers would also be required to use the BSG test to identify infected sets, and apply an approved method of in-situ euthanasia.

6 6 13. Local wildlife managers will be responsible for taking samples from deceased animals, including badgers, and sending them to the appropriate authorities for the purpose of disease monitoring. The costs incurred in these activities will be met from Animal Health and Welfare budget and the data used to form a valuable aspect of national disease monitoring and control policies. 14. UKIP will support existing agricultural related research funding, but would wish to prioritise protein efficiency in livestock breeding and to focus plant breeding efforts on improving yield and protein quality of grasses and pasture legumes. We are concerned at the very high dependency of the Welsh livestock industry on imported soya. We believe that the climatic conditions in Wales are conducive to producing superb forage that could displace a significant proportion of soya in ruminant rations. With improved locally specific plant breeding and new technologies, peas, beans and linseed could be attractive home grown protein crops in Wales. 15. The EU has recently 'devolved' the decision on whether to permit the cultivation of GM crops to the Member States. UKIP is aware of the controversy surrounding this issue and respects the decision of the Welsh Assembly the cultivation of GM crops in Wales. However, UKIP takes a science-first approach to any matter concerning agriculture and we wish to support a progressive farming sector. We acknowledge the significant advances that have been made in precision breeding technology in the last 15 years and recognise the advantages this new technology could bring to wider society. UKIP would seek to permit the use of this new technology separately from old GM-technology. We would give Members of the Welsh Assembly a free vote after a full debate on the topic at the earliest opportunity. 16. UKIP will incentivise the construction and running costs of on-farm or mobile abattoirs from existing Rural Development funds, and rationalise the inspection regime to reduce wasteful inspections and facilitate compliance. We believe that animal welfare, meat quality and a shorter supply chain will benefit as a consequence. We would hope that this would facilitate a selffinancing, more profitable farmer-owned high quality grass-to-meat international industry. 17. UKIP would reinforce existing legislation to ensure that Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), together with EU designated Special Protection Areas for rare birds and Special Areas of Conservation for rare vegetation, were maintained under good management, or put back into good condition, under the criteria that existed in making good to bad assessments before stock

7 7 removal in At that time under-grazing was considered to be as serious a problem as over-grazing. It always has been the responsibility of the land custodians to pay for the management of these sites. UKIP would require a simple inspection process by a team of approved specialists to make decisions and take action on a site by site basis. Decisions would be constructive and not penal. 19. UKIP will review heather burning legislation in the expectation of increasing the safe use of this highly effective organic farming tool, along with the new very successful controlled cold burn and reseeding technologies, which greatly reduce the risk of damaging wild fires. Our objective is to enable Wales to pride itself on its high quality, well managed, heather and the benefits this gives to pollinators, a much greater variety of birds, mammals, plants and invertebrates, than on unmanaged moors. Wales has the potential to double the existing area of heather moorland. UKIP will support and encourage accreditation of well managed land, and the current RSPB High Nature Value farming proposals. 20. UKIP is very concerned by the wilding and/or massive de-stocking policies in the Uplands of Wales, which have been conducted since 1999 without any sound supporting scientific evidence, or thought to the adverse impacts this action would have on habitats, soil quality, wildlife species, biodiversity, public access, tourism, food production, farmers, commoners and graziers. The increased wild fire risk, invasive plant species such as substantial areas of bracken discharging harmful quantities of shikimick acid, quercetin and ptaquiloside emulsion into ground water, and unpalatable weed grasses now also infested with ticks, the impact on insect, soil and bird life through the absence of livestock dung and urine, soil and peat degradation and loss through lack of the right mix of grazing animals, have all created an environmental, ecological, farming and social cataclysm at great cost to the taxpayer with no rewards. UKIP will strive with all parties to rectify this very serious situation by deploying and encouraging traditional management, best practice and new technologies. Wales requires a significant increase in private investment to convert a further 50% its farmed uplands and moorlands to well managed status, as they support significant rural communities and rich biodiversity and food production. 21. UKIP recognises that Wales will not be safe for walkers, tourists and all warm blooded species until the tick infestations carrying lyme and other dangerous diseases are brought back under control.

8 8 22. UKIP will not support the current right to roam proposals in Wales, which have a very serious detrimental human disturbance effect on wildlife and fisheries. Human access requires legally binding managed access agreements, which will benefit the long term interests of all parties. 23. UKIP would address the numerous social exclusion and societal problems created by a failing education system, by carefully crafting a superb National Work and Skills Service, to build new quality lives for large numbers of people. UKIP recognises that there is a major opportunity to bring together education reform for non-academic achievers and deliver much needed rural skills by enhancing the kind of frameworks proposed by such organisations as the Centre for Social Justice. The countryside uplands of Britain can provide practical, traditional and modern, craft or trades roles and apprenticeships, for at least half a million younger people. This NWSS can properly support longer term planning for the existing private and voluntary sector, and sustain the existing 600,000 strong work-force practising these specialist services in the countryside. Rehabilitation of lost souls and restructuring of the rural areas of Scotland, for example providing skills for the good management of existing woodlands and forests, would offer considerable long term productive opportunities, which would benefit all interests. Supplementary references Two hour video in two parts. setting out the background, problems and solutions to Britain s wildlife management and biodiversity crisis. Edmund Marriage as at 23 MAR 2016 patrickfound@btinternet.com