The latest QMS farm profitability survey makes pretty sober reading.

Despite much better cattle and sheep prices, only 21% of suckler herds, and 20% of hill sheep farmers managed to break even.

I know from our own end of year accounts that despite the better lamb and cattle prices, the big rise in fertiliser feeding and fuel meant we were no better off.

This demonstrates once again how vital LFA and SFP payments are to the very survival of livestock farming in Scotland.

Against that background, it is of grave concern that a leaked EU Commission draft budget proposed swingeing cuts in CAP spending to fund other priorities, increased modulation and a move to co-financing of the CAP by Member States.

The intentional leaking of the draft budget is, of course, the first salvo in the big battle that lies ahead on the future of the CAP post 2013.