In the Spring Statement, Chancellor Rachel Reeves aimed to reduce spending to comply with her own fiscal rules, as rising borrowing costs, weaker than expected economic growth and the turbulence of a “world changing before our eyes” wiped out the £9.9 billion headroom she left in the Autumn Budget.
NFU President Tom Bradshaw said he agreed with the Chancellor that “our world is changing, and we are facing an increasingly insecure global stage”.
“Safeguarding our food security is an essential part of the nation’s ability to remain resilient to international shocks,” he said.
“The government’s own manifesto said food security is national security.
“But the policies announced since the election have only delivered blow after blow to farmers and growers’ confidence which is now at an all-time low, with investment plummeting.”
Foundations for food security
NFU President Tom Bradshaw’s message to government was clear: “We want to work with the government to deliver the foundations for food security, economic growth and environmental delivery and we have the blueprints to support this.
“We will continue to make the case for investment ahead of the comprehensive Spending Review.”
In the days leading up to today’s Spring Statement, the NFU joined forces with more than 50 farming and environment organisations to call on the Chancellor not to cut Defra’s farming budget following the sudden closure of SFI24 applications.
What was announced?
Introducing her Spring Statement, Ms Reeves again said the fiscal rules were “non-negotiable”, but revealed that latest OBR (Office for Budget Responsibility) forecast had shown ‘rule one’ – that day-to-day spending be met by tax receipts – would now have been missed by £4.1bn in 2029-30.
The OBR had also downgraded its growth forecast for the coming year, she said, from 2% to 1% but it had upgraded growth for the next four years.
Measures announced included an extra £2.2bn of defence spending, to include “new novel technologies”, procurement reform, skilled jobs at new “advanced manufacturing facilities”, investment at the UK’s nuclear submarine site in Barrow, and a new body to drive value for money.
The Chancellor set out an aspiration to make the UK “a defence industrial superpower”.
A boost from recent planning reforms and the government's house building aspirations, Ms Reeves said the OBR had forecasted these to increase GDP by 0.2% to 2029-30, an additional £6.8bn per year.
“We will continue to make the case for investment ahead of the comprehensive Spending Review.”
NFU President Tom Bradshaw
There will be reforms to cut the costs of running government by 15% and deliver £2bn of savings by 2029-30, including the already-announced abolition of NHS England and a voluntary exit scheme for civil servants.
Meanwhile, £3.25bn of public service reforms under a ‘transformation fund’ will boost efficiency, invest in AI and technology tools and deliver a further £3.5bn of savings by 2029-30.
In a positive move, following persistent NFU lobbying, the government also announced its plans to invest more than £800,000 in the National Rural Crime and Wildlife Crime units this week. More is needed but it is a good start.
The NFU will continue to represent and fight for its members on the family farm tax, SFI and a raft of key policy measures included in our Blueprints for Growth.
