Policy director blog, written by policy and communications director James McCluggage
Recent public discussion has raised an important question about the role representative organisations should play in the development of government policy. It is worth being clear from the outset: the Ulster Farmers’ Union does not dictate government policy, nor should any individual organisation do so. Government is elected to govern. Ministers ultimately make decisions and are accountable to the Northern Ireland Assembly and, ultimately, the public for those decisions. But there is an equally important part of good government which should not be overlooked: effective policy is rarely developed successfully in isolation. Representative organisations have a legitimate and necessary role in bringing practical experience, evidence and the views of those directly affected by policy into the decision-making process. That is what the UFU seeks to do.
The UFU is Northern Ireland’s largest democratic voluntary organisation representing farmers and growers, with around 12,000 members. It is not simply a small group of people sitting around a table in Belfast deciding what agriculture should look like. Our policy positions begin at grassroots level. Farmers raise issues through local groups and counties. Those views are then considered through commodity and policy committees covering the breadth of Northern Ireland agriculture. Recommendations ultimately progress through the Union’s democratic structures, including its Executive, before becoming agreed UFU policy. That process matters.
When the UFU speaks to a Minister, MLA, MP, civil servant or other stakeholder, our responsibility is to bring forward the collective experience of the farming families we represent. Sometimes government will agree with us. Sometimes it will not. Indeed, anyone familiar with agricultural policy will know that disagreement between the UFU and government departments is hardly a new phenomenon. Constructive disagreement is part of a healthy democracy. Our role is to scrutinise proposals, highlight unintended consequences, offer alternatives and explain how policies designed on paper may operate when they reach a farm business.
Agriculture is particularly dependent on that practical engagement. Decisions around animal health, nutrient management, environmental regulation, farm support, planning or generational renewal can have significant consequences for individual farm businesses and the wider food supply chain. The people working within those businesses inevitably possess knowledge and experience that government should want to understand. That is also why co-design has increasingly become part of modern policymaking. Co-design does not mean handing responsibility for policy to an interest group. It means bringing government, stakeholders, specialists and those affected by a policy around the same table early enough to identify problems and develop workable solutions. The UFU has participated in many such processes with DAERA and other bodies. We do so because good policy should combine political accountability, departmental expertise, scientific evidence and real-world experience. None should operate in isolation.
The same principle applies to our political engagement. The UFU is proudly non-party political. We work with politicians from every political background and with whichever party holds responsibility for agriculture. Our job is not to determine who governs Northern Ireland. Our responsibility is to make sure whoever governs understands the implications of their decisions for farming and food production. We similarly work alongside environmental organisations, government agencies, researchers, processors, retailers, other representative bodies and many others. There will inevitably be areas where our views differ. That should not prevent dialogue. There is a wider issue here for representative democracy.
If organisations representing thousands of people cannot challenge government policy robustly, there is little point in representative organisations existing. Equally, representative organisations must recognise that putting forward a position does not automatically give them a veto over government decisions. The relationship works best when both principles are respected. The UFU will continue to make its case firmly when necessary. We will continue to challenge decisions when our members believe they are wrong. We will also continue to sit around tables, examine evidence, seek compromise and work constructively with government when solutions can be found. Those things are not contradictory. They are what effective representation looks like.
Northern Ireland agriculture faces some enormously difficult decisions in the years ahead. From environmental improvement and climate obligations to food security, farm profitability and generational renewal, there will rarely be simple answers. Those challenges will not be resolved through government alone, nor through farming alone. They will require respectful engagement, good evidence and a willingness on all sides to listen. That has always been the UFU’s role. Not to dictate policy, but to help make sure the people affected by it have a meaningful voice in shaping it.
