British farmers drove their tractors outside the UK parliament in central London to protest against post-Brexit trade agreements that they say threaten food production.
Around 100 tractors from across the country gathered in Westminster, where they blew their horns and raised slogans including "Support British farmers" and "Brexit is a disaster".
"Enough already," organiser Liz Webster of Save British Farming told AFP, condemning accusations of "sub-standard" imports that "undercut" British produce.
Britain has signed several trade agreements since leaving the European Union in early 2020 after Britons voted to leave the bloc in a referendum four years earlier.
Farmers argue that some of the deals and the lack of import checks allow poorer quality food into Britain from countries with less stringent rules.
They add that the policy in England of paying farmers to create habitats for environmental reasons has taken land out of food production.
There have been several sporadic demonstrations in recent months against the agricultural policies of the Conservative government, which has been in power for 14 years since Brexit.
British agriculture accounts for around 60% of the food consumed in the UK, but farmers fear that this is falling.
They also say they are suffering from rising costs and a shortage of seasonal workers, many of whom are foreign and harder to recruit post-Brexit.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak pledged to support British farmers when he told the National Farmers Union conference last month that "the nation's food security" was a "vital part of our national security".
The Tories are well behind the main opposition Labour Party in opinion polls as the general election looms later this year. / BGNES
.jpeg)
