THE ongoing protests by farmers across the UK have reached Edinburgh, with a rally held outside the Scottish Parliament building yesterday.
Hundreds turned up to voice their concerns and call on the government to increase support for the agricultural sector in next week’s budget.
It comes following a demonstration in London last Thursday, which saw around 13,000 farmers opposing Labour’s plans to impose a 20% inheritance tax on farms worth over £1m.
However, Scots have slammed the protest on social media, particularly due to some of its strongly worded arguments.
Around 67,000 people are employed in agriculture in Scotland, with a further 360,000 dependent on the sector, according to farmers’ union NFU Scotland.
The union is calling for the overall budget for farmers to increase to £776m and commit to funding to provide financial stability.
Farming leaders also want to see the restoration of unallocated funds amounting to £46m, which was removed from past budgets.
With the budget looming next Wednesday, the Scottish Government had previously said it was “unequivocal” in supporting the sector.
A snap was shared to social media yesterday of a lorry parked up near Holyrood, bearing the slogans “No farmers, no food” and “F**k Starmer, support farmers”.
It was posted with the caption: “This was, as you can see, parked at the car park next to the palace. There was a pretty big crowd outside the Parliament.”
It has since received over 200 likes and more than 120 comments from disgruntled Scots sharing their own opinions.
One wrote: “One day in the distant future we will see campaigners who can comprehend what is a devolved power and what isn’t.
“In this case, protesting the UK Labour government who sit in Westminster by parking a lorry outside the Scottish Parliament suggests that the campaigners aren’t exactly switched on politically.”
Another said: “Such a brain-dead slogan and an example of agricultural exceptionalism.
“Farmers have historically received huge amounts of handouts without any accompanying sustainability criteria; have hugely benefited from rising land values; and voted en masse for Brexit.
“I believe the phrase ‘you reap what you sow’ is quite relevant here.
“To be fair, farmers do need to be supported, and they have suffered from the increasing share of the profit pie that various middlemen and supermarkets have taken but these protests generally aren’t about that.”
A third commented: “Doesn’t look like this farmer is struggling for new equipment. My money is on this being someone who can well afford the proposals.
“Sure, there’s farmers who are struggling. I don’t think the correlation between poor farmers and those upset about inheritance tax is particularly strong.”
Another said: “Nearly 70% of Scottish farmers voted for Brexit. And the wider UK farming community also overwhelmingly voted for it.
“Simply put, get it up ye (sic).”
A fifth added: “I wonder who paid for that very nice paint job and decals? I do hope this is not on farm expenses.”
