Poverty is a rural issue. One quarter of rural residents live in poverty, a figure unchanged since the 1980s. Rural low pay is a critical problem because so many of those in poverty are also in work. There is little history of unionised labour in rural areas and asserting rights and minimum wages is still far from universal, particularly for migrant workers. The problems of the countryside go beyond the debates about hunting and fuel protests.
Labour has been active and reforming, leading to some radical shifts in rural policy. Placing social justice central to rural policy, Labour has demanded that all Whitehall departments must account for the impact of their policies on the fifth of the population that live outside urban areas. And the party has also been vocal in pushing for major reforms at a European level, including of the Common Agricultural Policy.
There is no doubt that, from a social justice perspective, these policy shifts are vital and will become increasingly important. An ageing population brings service and welfare pressures to rural areas because older citizens dominate rural Britain.
But Labour’s record is not spotless. The recent debacle over IT system failures at the Rural Payments Agency has raised questions of how high up rural issues are on Defra’s agenda. It was bad enough leaving farmers in financial difficulty, but it was made worse by the smooth handling of the same change north of the border. If money talks, then the three per cent of total – current and projected budget – spend on rural affairs renders rural interests a mere whisper within Defra. Given rural interest groups already feel marginalised, the recent reshuffle has caused further discontent. The ‘part-time’ position of the minister responsible for food and farming, Lord Rooker, has not helped.
But the greater threats to progress, and source of potential protest, are likely to come from outside Defra. Public services are critical to the wellbeing and sustainability of rural communities, and actions to slow the closures of rural post offices and schools will not be enough. There are real tensions over service centralisation, such as healthcare and police force mergers, and rural communities need to be reassured that these reformed services will remain responsive. A progressive debate is required on both provision and innovative delivery so that small and dispersed needs are not equated with invisibility. This means exploring new technological opportunities to ensure access and quality.
As local government reform builds momentum, the emphasis on ‘double devolution’ brings real dangers of institutionalising inequality. Local decision-making, even at parish council level, can increase gaps between groups. The equation of neighbourhoods and parishes in the government’s proposals, and, in turn, the idea that parish councils are appropriate forms of local governance to take forward this agenda, is risky. Do parishes and rural communities want to take on greater responsibility for service provision, or conversely, due to the lower numbers of services that are likely to be located in the village, will they have less opportunity to take control of their own local destiny than their urban counterparts?
Likewise, more thought is needed on how strategies such as the ‘city region’ agenda will contribute to wider regional economic growth and have a positive impact on rural communities. A warning is offered by Defra’s attempt to raise rural productivity through extra funding to the regional development agencies. There are concerns already emerging that RDAs have an urban bias, and have yet to prove that they are able to connect and meet the needs of urban and rural development effectively. Allied to this is the RDA’s role in administering European money in the form of rural development plans. These aim to advance broad social and economic development, yet many rural groups fear that rural communities will be disenfranchised as the funding will cater to traditional economic interests – namely agriculture. Labour has to ensure that all opportunities for reform are taken.
The old splits of urban and rural are starting to heal, but to move forward, Labour, Defra and the government in general must make some tough choices to prevent them reappearing. The active and ambitious stand is welcome, but mature reflection on the risks is also needed. The noise strong interest groups can make, including those whose investment is not in social justice but protectionism, should not be downplayed. The stakes are high and progress vulnerable, but the direction is worth those risks.