“Nature is now going to pay the price”: Sheffield Liberal Democrats react to £100m cut to nature-friendly farming
The Sheffield Liberal Democrats have reacted with disappointment to news, broken by The Guardian, that the government plans to cut support for farmers to improve biodiversity on their land.
Research had recently found that the scheme was successful in increasing wildlife numbers. It included a successful trial in the peak district. Numerous nature organisations have condemned the axing of the fund, including the Wildlife Trusts, the RSPB, and the National Farmers Union.
The RSPB claim that this would mean a reduction of at least 239,000 hectares of land currently dedicated to nature, for example hedgerows and wildflower meadows, would be lost.
Labour have blamed the cut on a previous £100m underspend by the Conservative government, making the continued cost difficult to justify under Rachel Reeves £22bn programme of cuts. The Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) has been instructed to find £1bn of savings.
Leader of the Sheffield Liberal Democrats, Cllr Shaffaq Mohammed, said:
“If this goes ahead, it will be a disappointment that so soon into a Labour government we’re already getting cuts to vital projects which protect our wildlife and biodiversity. This isn’t the change people voted for.
Sheffield Council has declared a climate emergency. A third of our council area is in the Peak District, and we also have much farmland between communities all around Sheffield. Making money available to support local farmers and boost wildlife and ecology is exactly what the government needs to be doing for the sake of our environment here in Sheffield, and the planet as a whole.
This is not a great start for the Labour government. Now all of South Yorkshire’s Labour MPs are Labour, we will have to see whether any of them speak up against this cut or if they will allow it to go ahead. I know from speaking to so many residents across our city that people are concerned about the future of our environment. Our MPs need to stand up for us and be the voice they promised to be in government. They need to make the case to their chancellor that our environment is important to us.”