Wiltshire Branch AGM Chairman's Report
Wiltshire Branch Chairman Duncan Sigourney delivers his Chairman's Report ahead of the 2024 AGM
By the time you read this we will be a few months into the new Labour government. They have clearly started with a spring in their step and an eagerness to deliver. What this means for the rural economy is still unclear but one would have thought that they’d have enough distractions not least the state of the public finances to ensure a bit of a grace period for the sector. We can but hope.
However, that can’t be taken for granted not least as with such an enormous majority they may feel that there are some perceived easy targets within our sector that could bolster the public coffers.
The CLA’s role in countering any such moves will be crucial. Interesting times ahead. Unfortunately, the timing of the election impacted the early show season in that ministers and officials were unable to honour previous speaking commitments. Hopefully normal service will be resumed next year for the likes of the Royal Bath & West Show.
By the AGM another harvest will have ticked by. The ridiculously wet winter and spring has again caused serious issues for farmers. Very few farmers seem to have escaped the effects of the poor weather. Is this the new norm? It certainly feels like it. The poor weather did lead many to look more closely at the numerous SFI options in a bid to benefit from payments not linked directly to crop production. Some took that to an extreme resulting in Defra having to impose caps on certain options. Common sense prevailed.
Committee meetings have as ever covered a very broad range of subjects. Back in October we were joined by Alison Levy Head of Local Nature Recovery Strategy for Wiltshire. Although at the time the Wiltshire strategy was not as far advanced as in some other areas there did seem to be a clear roadmap as to how things would be progressed.
As always member engagement and representation within these initiatives is critical if the landowner voice is to be heard. Tackling rural crime remains a significant issue with many forces seemingly de-prioritising the issue due to budget constraints. The CLA are working hard to keep this up the political agenda. We’ve had discussions around green social prescribing. As is often the way there is plenty of interest in getting involved but the bureaucracy can be stifling and puts many off taking the plunge.
We also discussed at some length ahead of the CLA Council meeting in March the government’s ‘30 by 30’ strategy that would see 30% of land and sea being protected by 2030. Will this be watered down postelection, or will the classifications be ‘rigged’ to get us over then line?
Anyway, as ever I am very grateful to the committee members who give up so much time for the CLA and support me in my role and in particular to Jonathan Kerr as vice-chair. Likewise, we are so lucky to be supported by Regional Director Ann Maidment and her excellent team.
