jobs

[james armstrong]

“ Understanding the roots of agriculture in Britain is easy.

                
Britain has never within living memory, been self-sufficient in food
production.

               
In 1973 when Britain joined
the  EEC, we imported some 40 percent of
our  food needs..

               
After thirty eight years of the most contorted,  expensive, secret and anti-democratic 


               
Working of the Common Agricultural 
Policy,

                Britain still
imports some forty per cent of its food requirements.

               -
And  now 
often at higher than world prices.

              In
the process fortunes measured in £millions have accrued from CAP payments 

              to
a small number of agribusinesses and individuals measured in £milions each 

             - 
and to  multi-national
corporations in amounts (for one plc) 
approaching  £1billion.  

             
Jobs have been lost by agricultural workers in tens of thousands .

             
contributing to the  decline of
rural communities,  with shops closing,

              
and house prices  soaring out of
reach .  

             
Watercourses and the land, and 
those living nearby have been poisoned by chemical fertilizers

             
and insecticides This CAP  regime
has seen a disastrous  decline in  farmland birds and bees. 

            
Successive reforms have long ago lost sight of the purpose of the
CAP  

              
Which in any case was  a
political  expedient  in post war Europe. 

             In
the changed circumstances of to-day,  Britain’s foremost
need is for jobs. 

            The
least weak  argument against  abolishing CAP Is to ensure

             that the seventyfive  percent of the land of Britain which is claimed to be ‘farmed’ 
             continues to yieldits most valuable crop – jobs-  which enable 
rural communities to  thrive. 

            No
where in the bible is there an admonition to seek profits.

          The
precept  in Genesis ‘In the  sweat of thy face shall you eat bread’,

         
Points   agriculture in Britain in a new
direction for  2012  .   

            CAP
can help towards  achieving a
hundred  thousand more  jobs in British agriculture”.  James  


 		 	   		  
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