You could be forgiven for wanting to write off 2020: a wet start, an arid summer and a sodden autumn, with contractors struggling to juggle workloads and balance customer demands. That is before we start on the personal and professional impact of Covid and the looming Brexit transition.
However, whilst we have seen many challenges this year, there have been many positives at the NAAC. I have been engaged in many more meetings and activities than normal, which would not have been possible if I had needed to travel to them all, and so the NAAC and your interests have been more broadly represented. This has also made it far easier to keep a more balanced approach across the devolved administrations.
In recent weeks Defra has made tentative announcements about grant funding being finally available to contractors, in new post-Brexit schemes, which is something we have pushed tirelessly for years. This is a fantastic result, putting another line firmly in the sand, confirming that contractors are a vital part of UK land management and must be taken into account when formulating policy.
When the country went into the first lockdown, the NAAC was quick to react and ensure that contractors could keep working and moving around. We had a fast-track into Government and protocols were quickly put in place, with daily updates going out to keep everyone up-to-speed. Sheep shearing quickly took over as our biggest headache, when skilled overseas shearers could no longer travel. NAAC lobbying kept shearing at the top of the political agenda and, with weather in our favour, shearers put in many hours of extra back-breaking work and the job got done with a sigh of relief all round.
Red diesel hit the headlines in a consultation proposing to remove rebated fuel from all but agriculture (and a few more exemptions) and, after a robust response from the NAAC, we now await the Government’s response early next year.
Our Assured Land-Based Contractor Scheme is also gaining momentum, with the launch of a new Post Harvest Potato Treatment standard and the new Agricultural Operations scheme coming soon. This is gaining the interest of Government and industry, offering positive solutions to practical problems, whilst proving the professionalism of contractors.
We have all moved to meeting almost entirely on screens, and NAAC members have adapted to this new way of communication. We have had lots of upbeat and productive virtual meetings with members over this year, including section meetings for livestock, potato treatment and mobile seed. Our Breakfast Meetings have focussed on specific subjects such as transport and employment, as well as being an opportunity for our Corporate Partners to pass on useful information. Breakfast Meetings will continue into 2021, and probably beyond, as an easy way for the NAAC to keep members informed, and for us to keep in touch with you all.
The NAAC has worked tirelessly to support members and we now have a new website, an easier to navigate Find a Contractor, a re-vitalised social media presence and a raft of branding opportunities available to members, such as our new NAAC clothing range. We continue to aim to provide a one-stop-shop for contractors offering high level representation, business guides and information, events and training, helplines, and marketing assistance, to help keep members one step ahead of the competition. In response to members’ recent feedback, we are currently working on upgrading the Safety Management Manual, improving the Members Area and will soon launch a couple of new member benefits too. Watch this space!
Whilst this year will be one many will wish to forget, with some suffering a huge personal toll from Covid, I will remember the sense of community within our industry and the NAAC. Members have come together to support each other, even reaching across the water to our contracting colleagues in Europe. The sense of family and community is vital for our sector to speak as one voice, and that sentiment has certainly carried me through the year.
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