He is the best Defra Minister for the last eight years. His speeches are thoughtful and not simply driven by politically correct automaton and so for those interested in the huge interactions between landuse, agriculture and water and the environment these speeches provide a useful update on thinking.

Oxford Farming Conference 2019 address by the Environment Secretary

Michael Gove: British farmers can take advantage of the opportunities provided by Brexit Introduction – “History tells us science is the future. One of my favourite Radio Four programmes, second only to Farming Today, and is The Long View. Presented by the superbly talented Guardian columnist Jonathan Freedland, The Long View asks us to consider current events in their historical context, draws parallels between the controversies of our time and the challenges of our past. Few professions take a longer view than agriculture. Farmers plan, invest and produce for the long-term. While those of us in Westminster live in a world of hourly Twitter storms and daily news cycles where a week is now a very long time in politics, farming requires the patience and foresight to think in harvests and lifecycles, to see beyond the immediate and scan the far horizon.” Click here to read more