Local MP Tim Farron spoke of his fear for communities in the developing world during a Westminster Hall debate in the House of Commons today. Mr Farron spoke of the Millennium Development Goals set by the United Nations, which include aiming to halve the proportion of people who do not have access to safe water by 2015, but are currently set to miss that target by as much as 600 million people.
Liberal Democrat MP Tim Farron today wrote to Sir Terry Leahy, Chief Executive of Tesco PLC, asking him to follow the guidelines of Tesco's own consultants, Promar International, who informed them that farmers should be paid at least 30p/litre of milk, in order to meet rising costs and re-invest in their business.
Following recent reports that the population of rural areas such as Cumbria is set to increase rapidly over the next two decades, local MP Tim Farron has again called for the plans to downgrade Westmorland General Hospital to be scrapped. Mr Farron is concerned that a rise in population would lead to an increase in demand for services at the hospital, and at a time like this the hospital should be upgraded rather than downgraded.
Local MP Tim Farron has set about calling a summit on hill farming in the House of Commons in his role as Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Hill Farming. Mr Farron has invited the Government's rural communities advocate Stuart Burgess from the Commission for Rural Communities to come and address the group.
Liberal Democrat MP Tim Farron has today posted a parliamentary motion in support of small abattoirs, which face Food Standards Agency plans for the Meat Hygiene Service to move towards full cost recovery - a move that could potentially see many small abattoirs go under, as their inspection costs, already numbering thousands of pounds, could multiply eightfold. This would have ramifications for both the meat processing industry and the environment, through increasing food miles. In addition, the loss of small abattoirs would increase the potential for a nation-wide outbreak of disease,
Local MP Tim Farron is to support the Private Member's Bill to amend The Animals Act 1971 for a fairer deal for animal owners. The Bill which is having its second reading this Friday directly addresses the issue of rising costs of insurance for owners of cattle and horses.
