Mrs Truss was first appointed to the role last year, having previously served under the last government as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Education and Childcare.

NFU President Meurig Raymond said: “We look forward to working with Liz Truss in her continued capacity as Defra Secretary as we have done for the last 10 months.

“The NFU has been lobbying the next government on key issues in the farming sector and we hope that now we have Ms Truss in place our asks of Government, as well as the Conservative pledges, will be implemented in a timely manner.

“We are eager to work with the Government on their ambitious plan for Britain to grow more, buy more and sell more British food at home and abroad as the NFU and farmers share this ambition. We have already argued strongly that we need such a plan to reverse long-term declines in farming productivity and the nation’s self-sufficiency."

Mr Raymond outlined that the most pressing issues facing the re-appointed secretary would be to solve problems surrounding the Basic Payment Scheme before the 15 June deadline, and to tackle TB as soon as possible.

Commenting on her re-appointment, Ms Truss said: "It is a privilege to serve in this Government and I am delighted to be returning as Environment Secretary.

"Growing the rural economy, delivering for our food and farming sector, helping our rural communities continue to thrive and ensuring the protection of our natural environment will be my priorities and I look forward to getting to work as soon as possible."

Further Reading

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