NFU comment:
NFU flood management adviser Martin Rogers said: “We welcome the announcement by the RPA that £1million has now been paid under the Farming Recovery Fund. The total amount claimed demonstrates the acute economic impact of flooding which affected thousands of farmers across the north of England over Christmas last year.
“This funding is vital to enable farmers to recover from the floods, for many this was not the first time they have been affected. While this announcement is a positive step, we must remember that over £8million in funding is yet to be processed and we will continue working with the RPA to ensure that all outstanding claims, once submitted, are processed as quickly as possible. We are also calling for a full review of this round of funding to highlight what has worked well and where changes could be made to streamline the process for the future.
“Last winter’s floods were just one of a series of events to have a devastating impact on agriculture, rural communities and economies. While the NFU welcomes the Fund in helping farm businesses recover, the scale of the damage shows the clear and pressing need to ensure adequate maintenance funding in rural catchment areas to reduce the reliance on the use of this fund in future years.”
WATCH OUR VIDEO - CUMBRIA FLOODING
Low Bridge End Farm, which has been in the same family for the last 104 years, is a 50 acre farm in Keswick and was flooded extensively on December 5. Sarah Chaplin-Brice, the livestock farmer who owns the farm, is calling on the Government to produce a more co-ordinated response to flood victims in the future.