Opinion: Andrea Leadsom Named Defra Secretary of State

The change comes as new Prime Minister, Theresa May announces her new Cabinet following David Cameron’s step down as Prime Minister following Britain’s vote to leave the EU.

Meurig Raymond, president of NFU: “I would like to congratulate Mrs Leadsom on her appointment as Defra Secretary of State. I, along with the rest of the NFU officeholder team, will be looking to arrange a meeting with her as soon as possible. The NFU hopes it can work with her in a similarly productive manner as it did with her predecessor Liz Truss.

“Following a period of uncertainty we are now entering a significant time for our nation following the Brexit vote and the NFU and farming industry is looking forward to working closely with Mrs Leadsom as we together help forge the future of farming and food production in this country. At the forefront will be a new domestic agricultural policy. This should encourage growth, innovation, productivity and profitability.”

Dr Judith Bryans, chief executive Dairy UK: “We congratulate Mrs Leadsom on her appointment as Defra Secretary of State and we particularly look forward to building a strong working relationship with her and continuing our constructive collaboration with Defra officials. The dairy industry has serious challenges ahead but also many opportunities and we ask Mrs Leadsom and her team to ensure a smooth and seamless transition for our industry throughout the Brexit negotiations.”

Nick von Westenholz, CEO of the Crop Protection Association: “I would like to congratulate Ms Leadsom on her appointment at this crucially important time. Farming, more than any other sector, will be enormously affected by the result of the EU referendum and the new Secretary of State has a key role to play in the forthcoming negotiations on the UK’s future relationship with the EU and the rest of the world.

“For the crop protection industry it is vital that the UK continues to promote a science based approach to regulation in Europe while the UK remains part of the EU. Longer term there must be a smooth transition to life outside the EU where we can continue to incentivise and support the crop protection sector whilst promoting modern, productive agriculture and a competitive UK farming sector.”