The NFU’s campaigning ahead of the Spending Review has focused on showcasing how investment in the farming industry can drive progress towards government goals and commitments across economic growth, food security and the environment.
This progress rests on four main areas within the Defra budget:
- At least maintaining the £5bn farming budget over the past two years, invested in ELMs, including the Sustainable Farming Incentive, and grants.
- A cross-government biosecurity plan that makes use of all mechanics of government to protect farmers and growers from threats.
- End-to-end investment in agri-technologies and research and development from lab to farm.
- The flooding budget, continuing investment in rural protections, including the maintenance of existing assets.
As the Spending Review has a focus on government spending rather than tax, it is unlikely that we will see any announcements on the family farm tax. However, our campaigning on this crucial issue continues ahead of the Autumn Budget.
NFU lobbying on the Spending Review
NFU cautiously welcomes Spending Review settlement for Defra
The NFU cautiously welcomes the government’s announcement of an overall settlement of £7.4 billion for farming’s sponsor department, Defra, which matches previous budgets.
The government announced that £2.7 billion will be allocated to farming and nature recovery, but this will be offset by a £100 million cut to farming and countryside programmes.
Responding to the Chancellor's statement, NFU President Tom Bradshaw said: “From what we can see so far, the £100 million cut to farming means farmers and growers will need to do more with less.
“The devil will be in the detail. And it’s essential that the Environmental Land Management schemes will be accessible for all farmers to get involved."
Supermarkets, farming and nature groups send joint warning over the agricultural budget
The NFU extends the coalition of voices urging the Chancellor to protect the budget for sustainable farming after a joint letter with the BRC and RSPB was printed in The Telegraph ahead of the Treasury unveiling the Spending Review.
The NFU, along with several farming and environment leaders, also sends a joint letter to Farming Minister Daniel Zeichner, voicing collective 'deep concerns’ over rumoured cuts to the agricultural budget.
Farming and nature leaders in joint message to Treasury
NFU President Tom Bradshaw is joined by leaders from nature and farming organisations including The Wildlife Trusts, RSPB, CLA and the Tenant Farmers Association, urging the government to fully fund the agricultural and environmental budget.
NFU calls for investment in UK biosecurity following concerning report
A report from the NAO (National Audit Office) finds that key public bodies are insufficiently prepared for a major animal disease outbreak and would likely struggle to cope with one.
NFU President Tom Bradshaw reacts to the report: “I hope the Chancellor thoroughly considers the implications of this report ahead of her Spending Review next week and sets out a comprehensive and fully funded biosecurity, disease control and resilience strategic plan to help minimise the risks to British farming, the food we produce, and our economy as much as possible.”
NFU warns against cuts to ELMs budget
The NFU seeks clarity from Defra following media speculation that the nature-friendly farming budget will be cut as part of the Spending Review.
NFU President Tom Bradshaw says: “If this is a move away from the principle of public money for public environmental goods, towards a more socially focussed policy, it is misjudged.”
Read NFU President Tom Bradshaw’s warning in The Telegraph, Daily Mail, Independent and Evening Standard.
NFU and environmental groups urge government to invest in farming resilience
Following a period of dry weather in England, the NFU joins forces with environmental groups to call on the Chancellor to protect the agriculture budget in the Spending Review. Despite numerous UK governments’ continual focus on ELMs as being key to building drought resilience and mitigating flood risks, the future of ELMs funding is uncertain.
NFU President Tom Bradshaw says: “The impacts of climate change are already being felt by farmers and growers, many of whom were under water only a few months ago and now find their soil dried out. That’s why it’s so important we build resilience into the sector. A key tool to doing that is the farming budget.”
After an exclusive interview with PA Media (a national newswire), the joint call for government to invest in farming resilience was covered in The Independent, Daily Mail and Farming budget ‘must be protected as drought looms’ | The StandardFarming budget ‘must be protected as drought looms on the standard.co.uk.
NFU briefings prompt Labour MPs to appeal Treasury on the farming budget
Following NFU briefings about the importance of Defra's budget, we support a joint letter from a number of Labour MPs to the Treasury on the importance of the farming budget.
Photograph: Alex MacNaughton / Alamy
NFU discusses the importance of the Spending Review at banking roundtable
Following a roundtable with banking representatives, during which it was highlighted that the farming industry is showing caution in its investments, NFU Deputy President David Exwood says: “It’s all about building confidence now. The Spending Review will be key. We are also working with Defra on what the next version of SFI will look like and the challenges there.”
Photograph: iStockphoto
NFU calls on government to prioritise water management investment in Spending Review
The NFU urges the government to prioritise investment in water management in the Spending Review, following a report by the government’s independent advisers on climate change, the CCC (Climate Change Committee). The report notes that over half of England’s top-quality agricultural land is currently at risk of flooding, with this set to rise by 2050.
NFU President Tom Bradshaw says: “Everything comes back to sufficient funding. We need an agricultural budget which allows more farm businesses to take these important measures through the SFI, and a nationwide flooding investment plan, which recognises rural needs.”
Photograph: Sam Oaksey / Alamy
NFU calls for investment to counter increasing biosecurity risks
The NFU convenes an urgent media briefing alongside Labour Peer and former FSA (Food Standards Agency) Chair Lord Rooker, to call for a cross-government biosecurity plan and sufficient investment to counter the biosecurity risks the UK faces.
NFU President Tom Bradshaw says: “In the current economic environment, and with the pressure avian influenza and bluetongue are already putting on the farming sector and government resources, it’s clear that the government cannot afford another disease outbreak.”
Read coverage of the biosecurity media briefing in the Independent, iNews, Daily Mail and the Evening Standard.
Photograph: House of Lords / photography by Roger Harris / Kay Roxby / Alamy
NFU joins farming and environment organisations to urge against cuts to farming budget
The NFU and over 50 farming and environment organisations come together to call on the Chancellor not to cut Defra’s farming budget amid concerns that any cuts would ‘massively hamper’ the government’s ability to meet its legally binding environmental targets, and undercut food security.
NFU President Tom Bradshaw says: “Any cuts to the agriculture budget will make it impossible for government to deliver its commitments to support a sustainable, productive farming sector.”
Read coverage of the joint call to protect the farming budget in the Daily Express and iNews.
NFU President’s conference speech highlights £4bn farming budget is needed to meet government targets
NFU President Tom Bradshaw uses his NFU Conference 2025 speech to highlight that a multi-year farming budget totalling £4bn a year in England is necessary to meet the government’s legislated environmental targets.
The conference also saw Defra Secretary Steve Reed MP outline that the government’s 25-year Farming Roadmap would stand on three principles – ensuring a farming sector that has food production at its core; where farm businesses are more resilient in withstanding the climatic and disease shocks that periodically disrupt farming; and that recognises restoring nature is essential to sustainable food production.
Photograph: Simon Hadley
NFU submits top asks to government ahead of Spending Review
The NFU’s Spending Review submission urges the government to invest in UK food security by committing to a bigger budget for agriculture, a bio-secure Britain, an agri-tech revolution, protection from flooding, and a clawback proposal for IHT.
NFU President Tom Bradshaw says: “The government has been talking about a new deal for farmers. A Spending Review that supports a growing, resilient, sustainable, bio-secure and technologically advanced farming sector is the lynchpin of that new deal.”