Ms Lockhart joined farmers and industry stakeholders to celebrate the contribution made by British agriculture, and to highlight the importance of protecting domestic food production.

She said: “I was proud to attend the 11^th Back British Farming Day in Westminster. It was a privilege to stand alongside those who work tirelessly to produce the food that feeds our nation. The UK agri-food sector makes vital contribution to our economy on a daily basis.”

The Upper Bann MP added: “I welcome the remarks from DEFRA Secretary, Dame Angela Eagle, who firmly recognised that farming is integral to our national security, alongside energy and defence.

“For too long, food security has been taken for granted. We have assumed that the food we need will always be available, regardless of what happens around the world. That is no longer a safe assumption.

“The NFU’s latest figures should be a wake-up call for the Labour Government. Great Britain is producing less food than it did 30 years ago, while our reliance on imported food has risen significantly,” outlined Ms Lockhart.

The MP continued: “Self-sufficiency in 10 out of 11 everyday food categories, such as vegetables, beef and poultry meat, wheat and eggs, has fallen, while agri-food import volumes have risen by 70%. That is a very worrying trajectory, particularly given the global instability we are currently witnessing.

“The Government cannot continue to make it harder and less profitable for farmers to produce food, while becoming increasingly more reliant on imports from overseas.

“Farmers are battling extreme weather conditions, diseases such as Bluetongue and bovine TB, rising input and energy costs, volatile markets and ever-increasing bureaucracy. They are also facing burdensome financial challenges from the Westminster Government’s inheritance tax reforms - policy that threatens the future of generational family farms.”

Carla Lockhart MP added” “The so-called ‘death tax’ is a huge concern for businesses across the UK. Changes to agricultural and business property relief, even following the Government’s partial pre-Christmas climbdown, still threatens family farms and is making succession planning and investment more difficult.

“These tax changes have the potential to break up viable family farms, undermine generational succession and ultimately reduce the UK’s ability to produce food.

“That is why I will continue to oppose these damaging measures and stand with farmers who are fighting to protect their businesses and pass them on to their children and grandchildren.”

Ms Lockhart is also pressing Westminster Ministers to address the growing imbalance between domestic production and imports. “Our farmers are expected to meet some of the highest production and environmental standards in the world, while competing against cheap food produced under unregulated conditions.

“Northern Ireland’s farmers are particularly well placed to contribute to a stronger national food supply. We should be expanding that ‘homegrown’ contribution, not pursuing policies which make it harder for farmers to remain profitable and productive.”

She added: “Consumers can play their part by buying local produce, but Government must also create the right conditions for farmers to succeed.

That means a tax system which supports investment and succession, planning policies that allow businesses to grow, sensible regulation and trade agreements that don’t undermine our own producers.

“The NFU’s campaign for a thriving future for British agriculture calls for ambitious targets for homegrown food production, and it deserves serious consideration.

“Back British Farming Day is about much more than wearing a wheat sheaf in our lapels for one day. It is about recognising that when farmers thrive, our rural communities thrive, our economy benefits and our food security is strengthened.”

Carla Lockhart MP concluded: “Farmers don’t need more warm words. They need political decisions which give them confidence to invest, produce food and pass their businesses on to the next generation.

“I will continue to stand up for Northern Ireland’s farmers and fight for an agri-sector that is profitable, productive and sustainable. We don’t want Minister Muir’s ideological policies designed to depopulate farm livestock and reduce meat and dairy production.



“Backing British farming should not be for one day. Westminster and Stormont must deliver policies that allow our world-class agri-food sector to thrive, not simply survive.”