“And here we are as farmers, trying to make ends meet…” : a comparative study of the experience of changed agricultural support in Scotland and England in a post-Brexit Britain

Sammanfattning

The United Kingdom left the European Union in January 2020, resulting in the British farming sector losing the economic farming support previously available through the Common Agricultural Policy. Consequently, new agricultural subsidy schemes have been implemented in Scotland and England. The aim of this thesis is to compare how the farmers experience these new schemes in post-Brexit Britain, the challenges they face and how they adapt to this transition. The study is based on semi-structured interviews with farmers and advisers in both countries, and the empirical data is analysed through the theoretical lenses of social capital, diversification and biopower. The key findings reveal significant differences between the experiences in Scotland and England. In Scotland, biopower functions more cohesively, as agricultural organisations act as an effective bridge of knowledge to the state. Conversely, the English context visualises the instability that arises when state power is exerted with lack of understanding of localized agricultural knowledge. While farmers in both nations face challenges such as bureaucracy, increased technology complexity, income uncertainty and trade difficulties, their coping mechanisms differ. In England diversification has emerged as a crucial strategy for financial survival, whereas across both countries, informal and formal networks function as a critical safety net to mitigate emotional and economic pressure, preventing structural collapse within the British farming community.