Meeting of the Parliament 07 November 2024
I draw members’ attention to my entry in the register of members’ interests, as I am a farmer and a former land agent. I welcome the debate, which gives me an opportunity to open for the Scottish Conservatives for the first time in my new role.
There will be times when the cabinet secretary, the minister and I have common ground. We clearly share a passion for farming, and I respect anyone who, like me, has been there themselves, working to produce food for our great country. However, there will be times when we disagree and, sadly, today is one of those times.
The cabinet secretary’s speech was not about the future but about grievances. It was about Brexit, and the Scottish Government’s constant grievance with it. Our rural Scotland has so many opportunities, and we should be approaching the debate on the positive issues.
The fact that, almost eight years after the UK voted to leave the EU, the SNP still blames every problem on Brexit, rather than acknowledging what is needed and what it can do to highlight the wonder of our Scottish produce, is a real pity. To be frank, the discussion on how we help our rural communities to thrive deserves so much more than this SNP Government motion.
However, while the SNP Government has its problems—I intend to touch on them later—it would be remiss of me not to start with more recent events. The decision that was taken by the UK Labour Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, to impose a family farm tax on some of our most hard-working people is not just shameful—it is a spin so fast that it is worthy of a place on “Strictly Come Dancing”. Before the election, Labour promised that it would not do that. I do not think that the Labour Government even knows how much of an impact the policy will have.
The National Farmers Union argues that the Treasury has got its numbers wrong—it will not be 25 per cent of UK farmers who are affected by the tax change, as Labour claims; it will impact almost every food producer in the country. The Scottish Conservatives and others have written to the chancellor to demand that she reverse that damaging and thoughtless measure and ensure that that vital relief is restored. Otherwise, it could spell the end for family farming in Scotland.
Labour also announced its plan to apply the Barnett formula to funding for agriculture and fisheries, contrary to the recommendations in the Bew review, in a move that was ruled out by the previous Conservative UK Government. That could have serious implications for budget planning.
Not content with taking our land and changing the budgets, Labour made it a triple whammy by changing rules on pick-up trucks, which are the modern workhorse of many farms and commercial businesses. I say to Labour, “Don’t worry, we have heard you loud and clear—you don’t like rural Scotland; it’s fine.”
Labour has shown very early that it does not have the interests of rural communities at heart but, to be frank, does the SNP? The cabinet secretary paints a happy picture, but the simple fact is that decisions—