NFU propaganda

[james armstrong]

Following to-days BBC Radio Farming Today programme I sent this off to the  presenter, Charlotte Smith:

We hear, Four EU countries are transferring funds from rural development budget to direct payments to farmers.

That means 23 counties out of 27 are complying with Peter Kendall's (president of NFU)  
condition that  all countries do the opposite  and he too  will  support 
cutting direct payments .  What planet does he, (and Charlotte Smith) 
live on.

This listener for one 'didny  come doon the Clyde in a  wheelbarry'.   



What a weak reason for the NFU to oppose proposed cuts to  Single Farm Payments etc. 

And the   four countries he quoted ?  

Spain and Lithuania, and Bulgaria and Rumania .   

How crucial are the last three in determining CAP policy?



Once again Farming Today give air time to an interest group.

Why dont  you tell listeners Peter Kendall  gets £400,000 a year from taxpayers?

Its called declaring an interest .

The money does not come from Europe as PK said  but is £3.4bn 
returned of the  £10.3 bn annual  UK membership fee paid unknowingly by BBC 
listeners , but returned not to taxpayers but to 175,000 mostly millionaire landowners.   



His argument can be reversed.  An unfavourable exchange rate for UK 
receivers of CAP  could completely change at any time to reward CAP 
receivers  even more. This is a much  more likely scenario with  a collapsing Euro 
currency in view. 

NFU's 50,000  members, I calculate,  receive £1billion CAP payments each
 year.  Why don't you ask PK to confirm this and give us his better 
informed estimate to listeners? and would expose NFU for what they are-  a millionaire landowners lobby. 



It is unacceptable that a commercial interest group are given so much unpaid air time, and on BBC,  and without declaring their interest, and allowed to promote even greater payments to their members, and put up spurious arguments unchallenged. 

Why oh why is it left to me to  oppose such money grabbing propaganda 
and FT presenters appear uninformed or unwilling to speak truth to 
power?  

What a poor show.



The March news that Fran Barnes, ex FT producer ,  now works for NFU confirms my oft 
stated complaint that NFU and Farming Today are bedfellows. 



Also CS made the statement  that  "farmers unions are concerned "...(about the 2p perlitre Dairy Crest drop in milk  price offered)

Who are these 'farmers unions'?  Was the  dairy farmer also an NFU member?
 Why were listeners not told this ? And listeners should be told NFU is 
 not a trade union ,  farmworkers are not represented by NFU  - a 
trade   lobbying group with a £24million annual budget. PK can give you the exact figure- but only if you ask him. 



James Armstrong     Dorchester .  The Land is Ours. 
 		 	   		  
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