FARM minister Lord Bach has been hearing pleas for more support for Cumbria's hill farmers.

Tim Farron, MP for Westmorland and Lonsdale, chaired a meeting of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Hill Farming with Lord Bach and, after the session, Mr Farron said the minister for sustainable farming and food had acknowledged the growing uncertainty among hill farmers in Cumbria and other parts of the country, following the announcement that additional support payments given through the Hill Farm Allowance scheme would end in March, 2006.

Lord Bach announced Government plans to launch a new consultation paper on the Hill Farm Allowance (HFA) in early December, which will last for around three months with the findings due for release by June, 2006.

Mr Farron said Lord Bach further conceded that there was a growing political consensus that there was not enough competition in the supermarket industry and that Office of Fair Trading criteria over intervention in the industry might be too restrictive.

Mr Farron said: "There seems to be some Government recognition of the importance of hill farming and that it will only survive and deliver its wider public benefits in terms of landscape, environment and culture if it has Government support."