FARMING minister, George Eustice, outlined his plans for the future of farming beyond Brexit at last week's Northern Farming Conference at Hexham mart.

He reaffirmed the Government’s commitment to support farm subsidies until 2010 and also gave the assurance that funding for agri-environment schemes put in place before the Brexit vote would continue.

Decision-makers were currently reviewing the CAP (Common Agricultural Policy), to identify the reasons behind its failure to deliver a satisfactory result for farmers and for the public, he said, describing the CAP as "hopelessly bureaucratic".

He also said it was too early to proffer an opinion on how the appointment of Donald Trump as USA president might affect domestic agriculture.

Mr Eustice promised the industry that details of any schemes that followed the removal of the traditional farm support mechanism would be published well in advance.

Among the options being explored was a system to offer farmers government-backed loans, to help them to invest in improving productivity, as well as profitability.

Meanwhile, agricultural insurance policies, similar to arrangements adopted by Canada and the USA to protect farm incomes, were also being considered.

Another option was to provide the tax incentives offered to Australian farmers – these encouraged farmers to set aside money when times were good, to cushion the effect of a prolonged period of low farm gate prices.

"The question is not whether we support this country’s agriculture, but how?" said Mr Eustice. "Future policy must be rooted in good ideas and sound advice. We need to remove the blinkers of EU membership and create a system, which the world will want to emulate.

"Historically, our subsidy system has been clunky, with too many bolt-on conditions.

We need tailored, flexible schemes which are designed to improve water quality and soil management and their conditions will vary from one part of the country to another. We must put an end to the perceived conflict which exists between agriculture and the environment.

"I would also like to reduce unfairness within the supply chain – are subsidies also supporting landowners, processors and retailers?" he asked. "If farmers received their fair share of the profits, they might not require governmental support, in order to remain in business."

He urged delegates to "stop fighting" the Brexit referendum and focus on building a new partnership with the European Union.

"We have a £60bn annual trade deficit with the EU, with food and drink at £10bn alone. The EU needs our custom and the sensible way forward is to agree an access arrangement to the single market that gives us tariff-free trade," he said.

The rules and regulations that had been a burden to British farm businesses would initially be duplicated, following the official exit from the European Union, said Mr Eustice. These would be used as a framework, which would be refined over time to better suit British requirements and eliminate unnecessary paperwork.

Commenting on the issue of migrant workers, Mr Eustice said he recognised the need for farms to continue to be allowed access to a foreign work force.

"I was a strawberry farmer for 10 years and we employed a number of migrant workers," he said. "I appreciate the requirement for additional labour and, although this is a Home Office issue, I will be working closely with the department. We do not want to pull up the drawbridge and there will be opportunities for work permit arrangements."