Charlotte Smith presents the first half of her investigation into Britain's farming story, and discusses what the world might look like for farmers after Brexit. In part one of the omnibus edition, Charlotte tackles the relationship between politics and farming - at a personal level, with former Agriculture ministers Nick Brown and John Gummer, and at a policy level, in a discussion on the Common Agricultural Policy.

What has the CAP done for rural Britain? The Irish MEP Mairead McGuinness argues that it has held back the forces of large scale business and protected thousands of small farmers who preserve the character of the European countryside. True, says the respected commentator Professor Allan Buckwell, but that's a romantic idea and we need to ask how much longer we want to use public money to support unprofitable small farms.

We don our wellies with visits to farms in the Scottish hills, the arable East of England and an organic, mixed farm in Wiltshire. We're with farmers as they come to town for their annual jamboree, the Farmers' Weekly Awards in London. And the economist Dieter Helm lays out his vision for an industry in which farmers only get public money for providing public benefits.

Producer: Chris Ledgard. Show less