From writing this on Wednesday, to when you will read it, there will almost certainly be another seismic shift in the politics surrounding Brexit.

Unless all commentators are wrong, the 'Tory faithful' will be anything but faithful in the English local elections. They will show their frustration with the government's failure to deliver the Brexit they want by voting for pro-Brexit parties. They want to make their voices heard and have little regard for the consequences for their own party.

This is pushing Theresa May into a corner and she has only one way out. She can no longer rely on her own party – her Brexiteers would rather go down with the ship than compromise.

And, she cannot risk a general election; she cannot give in to her eurosceptics because what they want would never get through the Commons; she cannot force decisions by whipping her MPs to vote – and all because her authority has already been rejected.

All that is left for her is to find compromise with Labour, get it through the Commons and then resign and leave her fractious party to fight it out.

On the other side, Jeremy Corbyn is not in a much better position. While Tory Brexiteers are vocal, millions of Labour voters support Brexit, regardless of the economic consequences. He is under pressure to agree a second referendum on the final deal, but that would be a big risk to his personal authority.

The activists in the party that propelled him to power do not want him to do a deal with the Conservatives to get a deal through the Commons, so that the European elections can be abandoned. Much as Corbyn might see chaos as a boost for the radical economic changes he wants, there are too many wise heads on his front bench team to allow that to happen.

The results of the local English elections for both main parties may deliver a shock that pushes them towards compromise. If that happens, some form of customs union with the EU – although it would not be called that – may be in the offing.

That would be a better outcome for agriculture, which above all wants to avoid a cliff-edge Brexit. It would ensure continuing access to our biggest market while keeping out cheap food imports being used to buy trade deals.

Even if this were only a temporary arrangement, it would bring some much needed stability back into agriculture. Ironically now, when prices for many commodities are good and even rising, the uncertainty of Brexit is undermining any stability in the industry. In short, it is impossible to plan for the future when you do not know the shape of that future.

Brexit has polarised politics and as a result everyday issues are off the agenda. It is hard to think of the last time a minister at Defra said anything significant or meaningful about the future for agriculture or food. It seems that until Brexit is decided the approach is to ignore planning.

We have no idea when Brexit will happen, but when it does, we still have no idea how farming will be supported, managed and regulated. Civil servants are putting their bets on some form of deal with the EU which will allow the UK to use its regulatory powers in areas such as product licensing.

If this does not happen, though, there needs to be a sound plan B. There is no evidence that one is being developed to tackle practical issues at this time.

We tend to see the EU at a fixed point in time, but this is not the case. While we stand still, it is continuing to develop plans for the future, not least the shape of the CAP after 2020.

It is pushing hard to conclude more trade deals before the term of the present European Commission ends later this year. Indeed, that end date has spiked a flurry of activity and decision-making, in contrast to what is happening at Westminster.

This week, the commission confirmed a €2bn 'soft loan' fund, in conjunction with the European Bank, aimed primarily at young farmers, and the farm commissioner, Phil Hogan, launched new grants to encourage farmers to plant woodland.

These are ideas to tackle present problems but they are sound long term thinking. By contrast, Westminster has no thoughts beyond the Brexit crisis and no real game plan for the different possible outcomes.