David Davis made a speech the other day which was supposed to reassure somebody or other that we aren’t heading to a Mad Max future without laws and rules. Here’s the speech – very light, and very unreassuring, on environmental protection.
Mr Davis passed the buck on the environment to Michael Gove with his ‘… crusading zeal to improve animal welfare and environmental outcomes.’.
Mr Gove made a speech the other day too, at the NFU AGM, here it is.
Mr Gove’s speeches are always worth a read, or a listen, although this was probably the dullest speech he has made so far. Maybe he feels that he doesn’t have to bother too much about farmers? Here is one passage that made me wonder how driven grouse shooting with its industrialisation of our upland landscape, its damage to the natural resources of blanket bogs and its provision of lead-heavy food, could possibly fit into Mr Gove’s vision and why he hasn’t moved at all, in any way, even a little bit, at all, to clamp down on the excesses that the government agency NE is allowing and facilitation in our countryside.
‘We want a healthy and beautiful countryside, producing food that makes us healthier as individuals, in a society which has a healthier attitude towards the natural world, an attitude that values permanence, where we wish to preserve and enhance natural capital and where we value the traditions and the virtues of rural life.‘.
Maybe Mr Gove will get around to it eventually, but his fine words are devalued by his lack of action.
To give Mr Gove a nudge then please sign Gavin Gamble’s e-petition in favour of banning driven grouse shooting.
PS Does this passage contain a joke about our Prime Minister?
‘Public access to the countryside is another public good that we should value. Now I don’t want to encourage everyone to ride or walk roughshod through working areas, walking through fields of wheat, it may well help connect us to the countryside but it’s not always the right thing to do.‘
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Green Shoots or Greenwash? Covered on radio 4’s Costing the Earth yesterday
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b09ry6jy#play
Don’t think I trust Gove at all, but then I am not a Tory supporter and don’t trust any of them.
Gove’s traditions oof rural life presumably include all so-called field sports and farmers wanton killing of any wildlife they feel disposed to blame or need to have more fun with.
I’m intrigued how: quote ‘We want a healthy and beautiful countryside, producing food that makes us healthier as individuals, in a society which has a healthier attitude towards the natural world, an attitude that values permanence, where we wish to preserve and enhance natural capital and where we value the traditions and the virtues of rural life.‘ is remotely possible in conjunction with extreme free market capitalism at any cost?
I agree that “Free market capitalism” is certainly not what we have at the moment, especially in agriculture, because of the large tariffs placed unfairly on non-EU foodstuffs and the disgusting subsidies handed out to the largest landowners by Brussels.
It didn’t used to be like that…
As the Policy Exchange reported recently:
‘After the second world war, the British government established a system ( “Deficiency Payment System”) that exposed domestic farming to foreign competition, while still ensuring that family farmers received enough subsidy to stay in business. This combination of competition and intelligent subsidy meant that domestic consumers had access to cheap food, while British agriculture became one of the most efficient systems in the world.
Fast forward to today and “80% of subsidies go to the 20% largest producers” while “the average age of farmers has risen to 57”.
The Policy Exchange estimate that free trade could boost GDP by around 2%-5%. It could also help reduce inequality by cutting the prices of basic goods and commodities, especially those that are bought most heavily by people on low incomes. After all, “at the moment policymakers don’t hear from those who shop at Aldi and Lidl”. The Policy Exchange also notes that tariffs and quotas are highest on the low-cost cars produced in Malaysia, South Korea and China, rather than on the luxury cars bought by more affluent consumers.’