Farmers across England will get £65m to help them deal with this year’s drought after warnings that many are at “breaking point”, Andy Burnham is set to announce.
The prime minister will also unveil a £15m fund to build on-farm reservoirs to provide water during dry summers in the future, when he meets farmers in the South West on Saturday.
But Gavin Lane, president of the Country Land and Business Association, which provides advice to landowners and rural businesses, said the move was welcome but “little more than a temporary fix”.
He also warned the reservoir cash would fund a “fraction” of what is needed and the announcements would “not change the reality that farming remains exceptionally difficult in this business environment… in a country that does not have a plan for climate change adaptation.”
Wildfires, water shortages, poor harvests and escalating fuel and fertiliser prices have pushed many into financial difficulty, prompting calls for the government to provide emergency cash support.
During his visit Mr Burnham will try to reassure farmers, many of whom turned against Labour over its hated ‘tractor tax’ under Keir Starmer, saying “farmers are at the sharp end of a changing climate, and they should not be carrying that risk alone.”
He will talk of how farmers have “brought in the earliest harvest of their working lives and watched the yield come in well down on what it should be.
“Lower income, higher costs, and no rain in the forecast. I understand the worry that comes with that. The ability to grow our own food is national security, and I will treat it that way.
“So we are acting now: more money into farm support, help to get reservoirs built, and easier access to water when it is scarce.”
Those in need say they are struggling to access the government’s Sustainable Farming Incentive, introduced to provide relief after the UK lost access to EU subsidies following Brexit and which provides payments to farmers to sustainably improve their land. It was abruptly closed in 2025 due to overwhelming demand and only reopened in June to small farms under 50 hectares.
Farmers say recent high temperatures have created a “hairdryer” effect, evaporating moisture in the air, causing heat stress to animals, affecting root vegetable growth and risking fruit and potato shortages.
Poor grain harvests are also driving up the cost of animal feed, with predictions that this could in turn push up the cost of meat as farmers are forced to reduce herd sizes.
Meanwhile, the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board has warned that milk production has already been affected by the extreme hot weather, with yields impacted by heat-stressed cows and poor conditions for grass grazing.
The new package is designed to support farmers who need to get water to crops, keep livestock fed where grass has failed and continue environmental work.