FARM DIVERSIFICATION AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT
批评英国新政策仅资助农场附属业务，认为应更广泛地促进农村非农就业，以更有效支持农村发展和低收入农场家庭。
Under a new policy initiative, grants will be payable for the setting up of ancillary businesses on or adjacent to farms in the UK. While this initiative is to be welcomed, it is suggested that more could be done to develop the rural economy as a whole. Farm diversification grants, modelled on previous farm capital grant schemes, are focused on a narrow range of activities, for which demand is likely to be limited, and are most appropriate for the larger farm. They imply that farmine will continue to be the main activity and run counter to current trends. The goals of rural development and farm income support might be pursued more effectively by encouraging the creation in rural areas of off‐farm employment, unrelated to agriculture, and suitable for members of families on low‐income farms.