Oral Answers to Questions

George Eustice Excerpts

Thursday 13th October 2011 Commons Chamber

[Andrew Stephenson (Pendle) (Con)]

5. What steps she is taking to encourage young people to take up learning and vocational training opportunities in the countryside and farming sector.

[George Eustice (Camborne and Redruth) (Con)]

6. What steps she is taking to encourage young people to take up learning and vocational training opportunities in the countryside and farming sector.

[Brandon Lewis (Great Yarmouth) (Con)]

11. What steps she is taking to encourage young people to take up learning and vocational training opportunities in the countryside and farming sector.

--- Later in debate ---

[Mrs Spelman]

I well remember, when we launched our upland support package, which brought £26 million of new money to help support farmers and their communities in the uplands, sheep farmers saying to me that this problem of succession is a serious one. So I was delighted to hear that Northumberland national park, in partnership with Lantra, is encouraging a programme with the local college in that national park for upland farming skills. A similar scheme called Dartmoor skills has also been introduced. I think that young people will increasingly be attracted to the tradition of sheep farming, which has a bright future.

[George Eustice]

Last year, the Welsh Assembly Government launched the young entrants support scheme—an innovative project that offers grant funding and business mentoring to new entrants and young farmers. Will the Secretary of State look at replicating something similar in the UK? We have a real problem in that around a third of farmers are over the age of 65. We must try to get some new people in.

[Mrs Spelman]

Yes, I think that that scheme has merit. As I announced earlier this month, we will have a rural strand as part of the growth review. I am sure that all Members want to see part of the economic recovery of our country vested in rural areas, which have often been neglected. A huge opportunity exists to help young people to enter land-based employment and to encourage rural enterprise.