Farron to launch 'Not A Penny Less' campaign at County Show

South Lakes MP Tim Farron will launch his 'Not A Penny Less' campaign for farmers at the Westmorland County Show on Thursday. Over 2500 farms in the North West could be pushed into the red if farm support payments are removed.

Tim's 'Not A Penny Less' campaign will call for the government to commit to replacing EU funding beyond 2020.

Analysis based on DEFRA calculations shows that over 2500 of the nearly 7000 farms in the North West could end up going bust without government support payments.

The government has currently pledged to maintain funding levels until 2020, however with the UK unlikely to leave the EU before 2019 this only allows for one year of guaranteed funding. It is currently unclear what will happen after this date.

Tim said: "Behind the headline, the government's commitment isn't as generous as it seems - it promises funding for one year following the likely date of Brexit. Farmers making decisions now about buying livestock and investing for the future are being left in the dark about what will come after 2020.

"I am calling on the government to reassure farmers that they are not going to face cuts to the support they rely on after 2020. Without these payments, thousands of farmers across the North West could go out of business. The rural way of life and the local landscape that characterise our area would then disappear."