LET'S HAVE NO MORE FARMING DISASTERS, SAYS KELVIN HOPKINS MP

“The tragedy of the foot and mouth disease cannot be blamed directly on anyone, but I believe there have been contributory factors which we should now put right for the future.

“I am writing to Nick Brown MP, the Minister of Agriculture, proposing a three point plan for the future of Britain's farming.

“First we should identify every individual animal in our livestock herds, including sheep, so that they cannot be transported around to extract fraudulent subsidy payments in the so-called “bed and breakfast” racket. Secondly, we should ban live exports (and imports) of all animals, except in specific cases for breeding purposes. This would both avoid the cruelty of long distance travel as well as helping to prevent the spread of disease. Thirdly, we should abandon the European Common Agricultural Policy, which is hugely wasteful and unfair. The CAP provides vast subsidies for the big millionaire grain farmers of East Anglia and elsewhere, while many small livestock farmers have a hard time financially. We should replace the CAP with a national subsidy scheme tailored to the real needs of British agriculture and food production.

“The changes I propose would help avoid epidemics in future, promote animal welfare and cost the public purse less in the long term. They would also be beneficial to the British countryside, as it is livestock farming which helps preserve the environment for the rich and diverse wildlife in out countryside.”