The Good Life

Pleasure as well as benefit derives from growing our own fruit and vegetables. Not everyone has their own garden and in Salisbury there are almost 600 allotments with a waiting list of nearly 90. Allotments first appeared with the General Enclosure Act of 1845 when plots were made available for ‘the landless poor’. This year we celebrate the centenary of the Small Holdings and Allotments Act 1908 which is still in force.

In both the First and Second World Wars, ‘Dig for Victory’ was the cry – and by 1943 there were 1.4 million allotments in the UK. Today there are still 300,000 – and they are now growing in popularity. But there is new pressure on allotment sites as their potential development value climbs. The Allotments Act 1925 required Planning Authorities like Salisbury District Council to consider every year whether they were allocating enough land for allotments. Sadly that Act was repealed.

Plotting for vegetables
Recently I sponsored a Bill in the Commons - The Allotments (Planning) Bill - to redress that balance. The Bill proposes that when local authorities permit large developments they may require the developers to provide land for allotments on that site or on land elsewhere. This is, in fact, already possible under Section 106 of the Planning and Compensation Act 1991 – but not consistently across the country. I am sure we need to meet new demand for allotments and this would be a good way of doing it.

Gardeners know that tilling the earth can bring peace of mind and relaxation as well as gentle exercise. New demand for allotments is coming from younger families who want to grow their own, fresher, organic produce. South Wiltshire’s Agenda 21 has called for more communal gardens, too, because they help build a sense of community.

Dig in your heels, too!
Our excellent Parks Manager has invited comments on his new Draft Plan for Salisbury Allotments. Please respond – and ask for more allotments in future! And please make it very clear to your local District Councillors that they should not cave in to pressure from the Government who have told them to identify land for new houses. This includes the Warwick Close and Fisherton Farm Allotments, on either side of the River Avon between Stratford Road and Devizes Road. I would support the Council – and I’m sure they have no intention of voluntarily allowing building here - if it came to a fight with Ministers. It would be a serious blow to our landscape and the character of the lower Woodford Valley if we lost this ground to developers. It must not happen. Shoulder pitchforks and prepare for action!

We cannot travel far from Salisbury without the sight and smell of pigs. This has been true since the City was given its Royal Charter in the thirteenth century and taxes were levied on local farmers by the Bishop, for grazing pigs and bringing them to market. Nearly all of them are free-range and welfare standards are high. But prices are very low and the question is, how long can the British pig industry survive?

Pigs are worth it!
Globalisation is no bogey – it is hard reality. Increasing demand for food in China and Asia, plus drought and low yields in Australia have pushed local grain prices through the roof. Last year a tonne of wheat cost £60. This year it costs £180. Nice for grain farmers. Not for pig farmers, who are losing over £20 on every beast. Even worse, if pig meat is imported from countries with low wage costs, lower feeding costs and poor welfare standards, as long as it is cut and packed for sale in Britain it can be sold as British produce.

If you think that is crazy, you’d be right and I agree. This country now produces only 60% of the food we need. Common sense says food security in an uncertain world means encouraging our farmers – not bankrupting them. So we should do three things. First, we change the labelling rules so that British means British. Secondly we tell those buying meat for schools, hospitals and the military that they must find good reasons to buy British. Third, we should choose not to buy foreign pork in Tesco’s, Waitrose, the Co-op or Sainsbury’s. Instead, look for the British ‘Little Red Tractor’ sticker on the pack or ask your local independent butcher – and do not take no for an answer, even if we have to pay a few pence more.

Countryside code
Finally, a plea to all dog owners. A family living in an isolated spot famous for its beauty and its bluebells, tells me they dread this time of year. In recent months nine of their chickens have been killed by dogs running ahead of their selfish owners and jumping into their fenced garden after their birds.

Even if we are on common land or ‘access land’ with a ‘right to roam’ we must control our dogs (on a short lead) so they do not disturb or scare farm animals or wildlife between 1st March and 31st July (the breeding season). That’s the law – and a farmer is entitled to shoot a dog that injures or worries his animals. A dog need not be on a lead on public paths as long as it is under close control. Better safe than sorry!

Robert Key MP
20th March 2008