Debate contribution: The draft Farming with Nature Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2025

Debate contribution by Mr Patsy McGlone on 19 May 2025.

MLA

Mr Patsy McGlone

Party at the time

Social Democratic and Labour Party

Date

19 May 2025

Type

Debate contribution

Business

Executive Committee Business

Heading

The draft Farming with Nature Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2025

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 4968886

Read the official Assembly record

Text

Go raibh maith agat, a Phríomh-Leas-Cheann Comhairle.

The SDLP welcomes the statutory rule for the Farming with Nature regulations. The regulations mark a significant step forward in addressing the twin crises of biodiversity loss and environmental degradation. The Farming with Nature regulations are necessary, science-based and long overdue. As we debate the regulations, I want to bring into the Chamber the voices of those who will most directly be affected by their implementation: our farmers. Over the past year, I have been in regular contact with farming communities across my constituency of Mid Ulster. Many of them care deeply about the environment. They understand, perhaps better than most, the importance of healthy soils, clean water and functioning ecosystems — after all, they work with nature every single day. However, they are also worried, and understandably so. Farmers tell me that, while they are committed to and broadly support the aims of the regulations, they need clear guarantees that the Department will back the legislation with the funding, practical support and fair incentives that are required to make the transition sustainable. The regulations insist on a significant shift in practice. They will require a change in nutrient management, habitat protection, soil care and livestock systems. That is no small ask, especially in the current climate of economic uncertainty, with rising input costs and the pressures that already weigh heavily on farm families. Those of us who were at the Balmoral show last week will have heard about that. Let us be absolutely clear: having regulation without support is to risk alienating the very people whom we need to bring with us. The Assembly must recognise that our farmers are not the enemies of nature but essential partners in restoring it. If we expect them to meet higher environmental standards, we have a duty, as legislators and policymakers, to ensure that they are not left to shoulder the burden alone. That means committing to a well-resourced programme of support; necessitating targeted grants to help our farmers to invest in infrastructure and low-impact technologies; access to agrienvironment schemes that support sustainable land management; on-the-ground advice and technical assistance rather than just compliance checks; and a coherent, long-term vision for agri-food policy that values nature and food production equally. This is not about compliance; it is about creating a new model of farming that is resilient, productive and environmentally sound. We must move beyond the false dichotomy between farming and nature. The truth is that there is no future for farming without nature. Without pollinators, healthy soils, stable weather and clean water, our food systems simply would not function. Likewise, there is no future for nature in Northern Ireland without the active engagement of our farmers. If properly delivered, the regulations can become the foundation of a positive partnership that supports farming families to remain on the land while restoring the ecological health of that land for generations. That will not happen by decree alone; it will happen when we listen, designing policy that is not just for the environment but designed with those who live and work on the land. It will happen when we take seriously the lived experience of farmers and respond not just with rules but with respect, resources and realism. Real risk lies in failing to act. If we delay, we will only deepen the environmental crisis that we already face and make future reforms more costly, urgent and painful for farmers and society alike. We should not underestimate the opportunity that lies before us. The North has a chance to lead and to show how a small, rural region can support both a productive agri-food sector and a thriving natural environment. However, that leadership has to be rooted in fairness and partnership. I support the Farming with Nature regulations because they are essential, but I urge the Department and the Assembly to ensure that they are delivered in ways that uplift, not undermine, our rural communities.

658 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

Not flagged

Jev’s structured answers

Assessed 21 October 2026 at 12:38 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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