The last couple of weeks have seen me in North Pembs getting round to meet as many clients as I can, especially following our link up with VJG Johns. The weather certainly helped and most of the farms were very busy as they look forward to another farming year with all the challenges that brings.

It was particularly heartening to see so many sons and daughters fully involved in the various activities, but also more crucially in some of the decisions that need to be made. A lot of people are very quick to mark agriculture down as an ageing industry, but that takes no account of the young people who are already fully involved in the business even if they may not yet be integrated into the business partnership.

I also sensed a growing realisation amongst the “senior partners” if I can call them that (!), that there was a need to fully involve their sons and heirs in the business on a proper legal basis sooner rather than later. Perhaps this has been helped by the recent upturn in fortunes within the agriculture sector, and with another CAP Reform in the offing it is a good tine to look at the future of the business.

Successive reforms of the CAP always set out to simplify the various regulations but inevitably result in even further paperwork and bureaucracy, and the more prepared the farm business is in terms of estate planning, partnership agreements, and indeed wills , the better!

It’s also been great to catch up with so many farming friends, even allowing for wisecracks such as “welcome to the real world “ and so on . There were plenty of others that I could not possibly put into print!!

Finally can I thank all of you who have congratulated me upon my award of the MBE in the New Year’s Honours List. I am absolutely delighted.

As the Rural Client Manager for JCP, if there is anything you would like to discuss confidentially and without obligation, do contact me, Malcolm Thomas on Malcolm.thomas@jcpsolicitors.co.uk or call me on 07837 109599.