New rules governing the use of red diesel could result in vital agricultural skills being lost, warns a Scottish ploughing match chairman.
Alick Anderson, who is currently chairman of the Grampian Supermatch, said rules prohibiting the use of red diesel in tractors at ploughing matches will impact education and skills sharing within the sector.
He raised his concerns about the new rules, which come into force on April 1 and also prohibit the use of red diesel in tractor road runs, in a letter to SNP MP for Gordon, Richard Thomson.
“A ploughing match offers an opportunity for education and skill sharing; ploughing match associations see it as their roll to nurture, foster and encourage the next generation of ploughmen,” said Mr Anderson, in his letter.
“I understand HMRC’s motivation to withdraw red diesel use to match competitors is based on environmental impact – I feel that the decision is counter productive.
“Putting matches out of practical reach of competitors will impact on the quality of work and efficiency on farms. This will have the opposite effect than is desired.”
Mr Anderson also warned the new red diesel rules could impact the viability of many ploughing competitions across the country.
“At least half of the competitors entering our competitions use their tractors in the course of their day-to-day farm work, where the use of red diesel is within the regulations,” said Mr Anderson in his letter.
“I fear that rather than draining their diesel tank and swapping the red diesel for DERV [Diesel Oil for Road Vehicles] before a competition, to comply with HMRC regulations, they will instead simply stop competing.”
He said his concerns against the new rules were driven by issues of inconvenience and practicality, rather than cost – figures from levy body AHDB show the average cost of red diesel in the UK in 2021 was 65.64p per litre, compared to 134.94 per litre for diesel at the pump.
In response, Richard Thomson MP said the UK Government and HMRC had form on this issue.
He said: “Back in 2008, they tried to ban the use of red diesel in tractors which were being used to help with setting up agricultural shows but relented under pressure.
“This time is even more serious as it threatens the existence of ploughing matches and the charity road runs by tractor enthusiasts which raise so much money for good causes.”
He added: “I have written to the Chancellor of the Exchequer asking him to intervene and ensure that a sensible approach is taken by HMRC so that these popular events can continue.”