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Farming Today: Tenant farmer evictions, Devolved powers post-Brexit, Rural tourism report, Himalayan Balsam gin.

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20/07/2017

Tenant farmer evictions, Devolved powers post-Brexit, Rural tourism report, Himalayan Balsam gin.

BBC Radio 4 - Farming Today, Tenant farmer evictions, Devolved powers post-Brexit, Rural tourism report, Himalayan Balsam gin.

When council auction off farmland, what are the options for unsuccessful tenants?

As cash-strapped local authorities sell off assets such as farmland, what's the future for those tenant farmers affected - and is this practice on the rise among councils?

As local authorities across the UK struggle to make ends meet, many have raised cash by selling off assets such as farmland. The latest council to take this step is Herefordshire - and this week, one of their tenant farmers who was unsuccessful in his bid to buy the land he's farmed for 14 years, says the move's cost him his home and his livelihood. As Steve Clayton prepares to move out, we ask Tenant Farmers Association chief executive George Dunn what the options are for tenants in this situation - and whether more councils are choosing to sell off farms.

A new report from the House of Lords has warned Westminster against trying to requisition powers currently held by the EU - such as those regarding farming, fishing and the environment - after Brexit, saying such a move could create instability. The UK government had suggested such powers should return from Brussels to Westminster, but this week's Brexit and Devolution Report slammed the suggestion, calling on them to instead give devolved authorities more influence in Brexit negotiations.

Farming Today continues along the theme of rural tourism this week, looking at a survey by land agent Bidwells that shows farmers and landowners are making more profit from running enterprises like glamping and bed and breakfasts, than from growing food. Anna Hill has spoken to the firm's John Hoy.

And Hertfordshire and Middlesex Wildlife Trust is taking a novel approach to an irritating invasive species: Himalayan Balsam. The hardy and prolific grass can grow over two metres a season and is tough to control. Now the organisation is collecting the plant for use in a local gin distillery, which is donating a percentage of profits to the Trust.

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Tenant farmer evictions, Devolved powers post-Brexit, Rural tourism report, Himalayan Balsam gin.

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