Bluetongue Virus in Livestock
Debate between David Reed and Stephen Morgan(2 days, 11 hours ago)
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Stephen Morgan
My hon. Friend will know that my colleague in the other place, Baroness Hayman, leads on a number of the areas that she describes, but I will certainly take those messages back to her. As I mentioned earlier, I am very keen to work with the devolved nations on the issues that we face in the farming community, and I look forward to working with my hon. Friend on any issues and concerns that she has going forward.
David Reed (Exmouth and Exeter East) (Con)
Livestock farmers in Devon are facing this bluetongue outbreak at an already difficult time. They are meeting unexpected vaccination and fallen stock costs following a summer of drought, while changes to agricultural property relief and business property relief are adding to concerns about farm finances and succession. Does the Minister recognise that the financial impact of bluetongue cannot be considered in isolation, and what assessment has he made of the cumulative pressures on farm cash flow this year?
Stephen Morgan
As I mentioned earlier, it was good to be in the south-west to talk to farmers directly about their asks of Government. We have put in place a number of actions following their asks, and we will continue to work closely with the NFU and others to understand what more they might need. I absolutely recognise the pressures that livestock keepers are under, including financial pressures and indeed wellbeing pressures. There is support available for the sector, but I will certainly take the hon. Gentleman’s views and concerns back to the Department.