Another farm year ends with Michaelmas on (29th September); other challenges come. Perhaps, nonetheless, it’s a season for optimism? Maybe this is always how it is in our ‘world’ and way of life. That opening might seem a little ‘off key’ in this week when the spotlight in the farming world has been on the frustrations arising from Defra /RPA’s latest ‘window’ for SFI applications, but the consequences of that difficult day have yet to be appraised. We’ll keep that for another edition!...

It’s not quite like the political world, but the professions do still hold these ‘reality’ events, mixed in with many on-line versions commonly now referred to Webinars. But we’ve just attended two of the traditional forums when not only is it positive to have the speakers ‘live’ before you, and good (some say better) to generate a wide range of opinions and questions, but also you can actually meet people – in the same business or in related businesses – and that also counts for a lot. Isle...

Everyone involved with farmers, farming, rural communities and life therein, will have sighed with relief (as well as exasperation) at the Government’s recent change, as far as the IHT implications on their properties are concerned. The revisions will help many families but won’t rescue everyone – and the biggest ‘boys’ (and ‘girls’ and many institutions) will still have to make the best possible arrangements to protect their assets. But the underlying worry persists that this Government...