I’ve welcomed the acceptance by the UK Minister of State for Food and Rural Affairs, Dame Angela Eagle, to visit Scotland.
I’ve been keen for the Minister to visit Scotland and meet with industry sectors facing challenges in the agricultural, food and drink, and fishing sectors, so at a recent DEFRA questions session in Parliament, I repeated the invitation to the Minister, which she said she was pleased to accept.
My office will now be in touch with Dame Angela’s officials to make the necessary arrangements, and I very much hope that she will have space in her itinerary to include the North-east and my constituency of Aberdeenshire North and Moray East.
I have written her to extend this offer with reassurances of a warm welcome and productive dialogue in my constituency, home of the largest slice of the fishing industry in these islands and some of the finest agricultural produce in the world, not to mention Scotch Whisky.
Local fishing organisations in particular would be very pleased if she came to visit to hear about their concerns in person, as would the farming sector and coastal community representatives. I look forward to finding out more about the plan for this visit and will be sure to update all interested parties in due course.
