Farmers union pass vote of no confidence in Daera

UFU president William Irvine said motion was first suggested in early summer

Northern Ireland's main farmers union has passed a vote of no confidence in the Stormont department responsible for agriculture.

The Ulster Farmers' Union passed the vote during an executive committee meeting on Wednesday, citing dissatisfaction with how the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (Daera) are handling key issues.

They said this included an "unjustified focus on agriculture" regarding the pollution in Lough Neagh.

A spokesperson for the department said it is "disappointed to learn of the UFU vote", and that it "is always open to discuss issues with them".

The union said the motion was first suggested in early summer, following the release of the Nutrients Action Programme consultation.

Something that the UFU said was carried out "without any prior consultation to any of the stakeholders".

'Mounting frustration'

UFU president William Irvine said the union had given the department time to see if things would improve but "after mounting frustration over the last few months on a host of other issues, this vote of no confidence was unanimously agreed".

Mr Irvine described the motion as "a public expression of our total frustration around Daera at this point in time".

Around the subject of the current state of Lough Neagh Mr Irvine said the issue was "a Northern Ireland society problem, it's a historic problem and all sections of society need to address this. It's unhelpful to proportion blame that way."

Among other reasons cited by the union for taking action were efforts in tackling bovine TB, ammonia controls and planning in relation to the Nutrients Action Programme.

Mr Irvine added the UFU had "continued to engage with the department in good faith, remaining patient and hopeful that co-operation would yield results, but felt this was not being reciprocated".

"Daera needs to work with farmers to deliver what is needed, and regrettably this has not happened," he added.

"This is a low point, our desire here is to get to a better place and to get delivery for the challenges agriculture faces."