In the last week alone, nearly 20,000 responses were submitted to the ‘Health & Harmony’ consultation which closed yesterday (Tues 8th May), with farmers, food producers and environmentalists sharing their views on everything from the support we give to farmers and food producers to the broader direction of policy post-Brexit when it comes to the natural world.

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Throughout the 10 week consultation, Defra hosted 17 events across the country alongside groups including the National Trust, NFU and the Eden Project, to hear first-hand from more than 1,250 representatives of the UK’s food and farming sectors.

The Environment Secretary Michael Gove said:

"It’s great news that so many people have responded so enthusiastically to our consultation. Leaving the European Union gives us the opportunity to improve the support we give to Britain’s farmers. We can make farming more productive, improve the quality of the food we eat and enhance our natural environment. We’ll reflect on the many thoughtful ideas put forward in response to our consultation and bring forward our plans for legislation later this year".

The consultation included proposals to redirect payments under the Common Agriculture Policy (CAP) which are based on the amount of land farmed, to a new system of paying farmers public money for public goods, principally their work to enhance the environment. It highlighted a number of public goods which could be supported such as biodiversity, high animal welfare standards and improved soil health.

Speaking on the BBC Daily Politics show Minister George Eustice (pictured above) was clear that the Government wanted to move away from the system we have at the moment where farmers are paid based on how much land they own or control. Instead, we want farmers to be paid for the work they are doing to protect the environment. That could include infrastructure improvements (for example in the way they manage slurry), better crop rotations or flower-rich margins around fields.

He also reiterated the importance of an agricultural transition period that gives farmers enough time to adapt to the new system.You can see the interview in full on BBC iPlayer here.

A recent WWF poll, undertaken by Populus, found that 91 per cent of the UK public want to see farmers paid to protect nature.

Responses to the consultation will now be analysed carefully and the Government will publish a response shortly.