Incoming Agriculture Minister must address almost unbearable burdens on farming families says Nicholson
UUP MEP Jim Nicholson has warned that the figures released by the Livestock and Meat Commission (LMC) on Monday, which show that farming families are putting in well over three quarters a billion pounds of unpaid labour on Northern Ireland’s beef and sheep farms prove that the massive demands placed upon Northern Ireland’s farming families are becoming almost unbearable.
Speaking from Brussels Mr Nicholson said,
“The issues arising from this labour survey must be urgently addressed by the incoming Sinn Fein agriculture Minister, Michelle Gildernew. She must also introduce a Rural White Paper and demonstrate the Government’s commitment to rural communities.
“Farming families are the lifeblood of Northern Ireland’s rural and agricultural communities but for too long policy makers in Government have turned a blind eye to the massive demands running a farm places on farming families and family life in rural communities.
“However the support farming families provide goes much further than just unpaid labour. They make an essential contribution to the countryside’s social and economic cohesion.
“Building sustainable rural communities in Northern Ireland will require a radical policy overhaul and I hope the Minister and the Department are up for the job. A future Executive must address the lack of young people entering the profession, providing proper child care facilities for rural families who need it and facilitate adequate re – skilling of farmers and their families.
“It is my hope that the Department gets the message that the excessive use of red tape and gold plating of EU regulations only serves to increase the levels of stress, anxiety and worry for the vast majority of farming families out there.”