WE'RE NOT quite into 'ho ho ho' mood yet and many hill farmers might never reach that state of festive euphoria, given the lack of clarity surrounding what's going to happen with Less Favoured Area Support Scheme (LFASS).

It has always been the declared intent of the Scottish Government that this was a vital component of maintaining agricultural viability in our hills and glens, but the reality flies in the face of that. NFU Scotland is rightly incensed at the revelation hidden amongst the rhetoric in the recent Scottish Budget that there was a 20% cut in LFASS payments written in to spending plans for 2019. Worse still, farmers and crofters also face a possible 80% cut to payments in 2020.

It's all very well for the Scottish Government to blame the EU for all of this, but just in case it has escaped the minds of those setting the budget in Holyrood – we are about to leave the EU and that this argument, therefore, holds little water. The nation's farmers expect and should demand that its politicians stand up for the industry.

We have no doubt that Fergus Ewing, as the Cabinet Secretary responsible for this sector, has argued the case for LFASS – but maybe not hard enough. He would certainly get the backing of NFU Scotland were he to dig his heels in on this one, though it might already be too late. As a self-confessed champion of the Scottish food and drink industry, he would also do well to remember that the much vaunted plans to grow our exports from land, sea and distillery to £30bn by 2030 needs the critical mass of livestock from the hills to achieve the red meat targets it has set.

That the union is 'gathering evidence' to help the Scottish Government put together a case to apply for an exemption from the rules, is a bit of an indictment to those in government charged with doing just that! It is particularly acute this year given the extremes of weather being faced by hill farming and the livestock sector in particular. LFASS would have been a lifeline in what promises to be a difficult winter ahead.

The staff at The Scottish Farmer wish all our readers the very best for the festive season ... we're sure that we will all be championing – or should that be champing – the very best of Scotch!