Andrea Leadsom: 'Don't leave rural communities behind'
One in eight people work in farming and it is a bigger industry than the car and aerospace industry combined, Andrea Leadsom tells the Conservative Party Conference.
Deborah McGurranPolitical editor, East of England It's a point she made in the Northamptonshire MP's first speech as Secretary of State for the Environment, Farming and Rural Affairs. She represents a rural constituency, which she praised: "I know from my own constituency of South Northamptonshire that the British countryside is some of the most beautiful in the world." Mrs Leadsom also warned that rural communities should not be left behind: "I want people living in our market towns and villages to have the same life opportunities as those who live in our cities," she said. Mrs Leadsom ended up in the job after this summer's bruising leadership contest and joked at her own expense that Jeremy Corbyn could have come to her for advice on how to ensure a short lived campaign. That went down well with the audience who welcomed her warmly onto stage as one of the leading lights of the Leave campaign. The grinning Secretary of State told the hall that we are selling naan bread to India, and coffee to Brazil and received applause for the fact that the French voted British Lamb their product of the year. She smiled purposefully before making pointed references to her joy at the chance "to plot a new course in the world" post Brexit. Mrs Leadsom promised to lead on the environment "committing to being the first generation to leave it in a better state than when we found it. Still smiling she announced that it was crucial to provide farmers with certainty and continuity. "It's important that we are able to confirm the same level of agricultural support until 2020." "I am convinced that outside the EU they have an even brighter future." The question is whether that will put a smile on the farmers' faces.