Dr Neil Hudson MP continued his campaign to bolster land-based education as the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee he sits on travelled to Harper Adams University where they quizzed sector experts on potential career pathways into the industry and the take-up of land-based courses.
Keen to promote the sector, Dr Hudson reinforced his commitment to widening access to land-based career paths in order to future-proof work forces and thus improve food security and ensure environmental best-practices.
During the Committee's visit to the specialist agricultural institution - Harper Adams University - in Shropshire, MPs toured an agri-tech research centre, on-site farm and the Harper and Keele Vet School - meeting a host of students and staff in the process. Then they held an official Select Committee session hearing from industry experts
You can read a comprehensive transcript of the event here - and watch here.
For Dr Hudson's part he was keen to see joined up thinking across Government to prioritise an agricultural workforce in order to provide the country with affordable, high-quality food. As such he focused on barriers to entry, career pathways, outreach and helping new underrepresented groups enter the industry.
Another issue he raised is that of retention. Dr Hudson is a keen mental health champion and instigated a Parliamentary Inquiry on Rural Mental Health - the report of which found that agricultural industries grappled with inflated issues of mental ill health and suicide compared to the national average. As such he asked about positive ways for the industry to empower its workforce to seek help if needed and remain resilience.
Finally Dr Hudson talked about transport as a barrier for those - particularly in rural communities - accessing education. This is especially true for certain hands-on courses where students are learning skills at antisocial hours such as milking cows, emergency veterinary duties or gathering time sensitive data.
Dr Neil Hudson MP said:
"Promoting an attractive offer to people young and old, rural and urban will be pivotal to creating long-term resilience for the land-based sector's workforce. This really is a matter of significant importance for the nation. We must make sure we have the best people producing the food we eat, protecting our landscapes and supporting our communities.
"I must also say it was greatly important to burst the Westminster bubble and take our Committee out on the road to the people who are most impacted by our Inquiry. We inform policy for the entirety of the UK, not just central London, so I do look forward to visiting more parts of the country in the coming months."
