A message from Robert Jenrick MP to Countryside Alliance members and supporters

In a statement to the Countryside Alliance, Robert Jenrick outlines his bid for the leadership of the Conservative Party.

As my daughters will tell you, I’m a countryside man. Weekend after weekend, I drag them, under some duress, to walk the very best of our countryside.

Growing up in Wolverhampton, the Shropshire Hills were just a short drive away.  Since I was a boy, it has been in England’s great rural landscape that I have felt most at home.

It’s why I am so proud to represent Newark, my rural North Nottinghamshire constituency.  

But let me be clear.  The countryside is not a theme park.  It is not a plaything or a holiday resort – to be looked at but ignored.

It is the beating heart of our economy and home to millions.  It should be supported – and championed – as such.  

So, I want to set out four key commitments on rural issues for my leadership of the Conservative Party.  

Protect Rural Pursuits

When I was first elected in a by-election in 2014, it was on the backs of literally millions of leaflets delivered and conversations held by volunteers from Vote-OK.  The promise I made to those volunteers then – that I would defend our precious rural pursuits – is as important to me now as it was then.  

Generational British pursuits like grouse shooting, deer stalking, and trail hunting are all under siege from a metropolitan class that loathe the countryside way of life.  Make no mistake, I will oppose each and every assault on our traditional pursuits.

Farms are for Food

Britain’s food security has continued to deteriorate in recent years.  The changes made to subsidies in the aftermath of the referendum have regrettably further diminished that.  Today, a broken market pushes too many farmers to turn good agricultural land over to either ‘rewilding’ or solar farms.  

It must end.  We must recognise that food security is a national security imperative and that the role of farmers is – above all – to feed our nation. That’s where agricultural subsidies should be concentrated.  It’s also why I’d ban prime agricultural land from being converted into solar farms.

I’ll pay farmers to farm – not support fashionable left-wing causes.

Reform Defra

DEFRA is supposed to exist to support our rural communities.  Instead, in recent years, it has become a obstacle to farmers and land managers.   I will restore DEFRA to its proper role, defending and enhancing those that protect, preserve, and farm our national landscape.

I will make sure that it is led by farmers and that each and every decision it takes places them – not fashionable left-wing causes – at their heart.

Protect the Rural Economy

I’m deeply worried about Labour’s plans for the rural economy.  The budget threatens to be a declaration of war on farmers and rural businesses.  In particular, I fear that the introduction of inheritance tax on family farms will break up generational farms.  Into this, we face the spectre of agricultural subsidies being slashed.  

As leader, I will oppose these attacks on rural businesses and always fund our rural economy properly.

Robert Jenrick has served as the MP for Newark since 2014. He was previously Minister of State for Immigration  and as Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government from 2019 to 2021