Government promises profitable farming post-Brexit

Farmers concerned by Michael Gove's recent environmental overtures welcome Defra vow

The government will take steps to ensure farms can operate profitably after Brexit, the environment secretary has insisted, as MPs challenged ministers to keep taxpayer funding for agriculture after EU subsidies are withdrawn.

Michael Gove said food production was at the heart of British farming. He told the all-party parliamentary environment group: "It would be impossible to sustain everything we value in rural Britain without thriving food production. And we need a balance [with environmental protection]."