Dealers find little cheer at meeting
Dealers find little cheer at meeting
THERE was little joy for machinery dealers when British Hardware Federation managing director, Jonathon Swift, met agricultural minister, Nick Brown, recently, to discuss the implications for retailers of the foot-and-mouth epidemic.
"There is massive concern among the 35,000 employees in the machinery supply trade involved in the selling and repair of agricultural machinery," said Mr Swift who also stressed the economic anxiety expressed by his members.
But Mr Brown said there was no way he could recommend a programme of compensation.
"This would open the Ministry or the Treasury to such a wide range of consequential loss claims it would be impossible to draw a line under the deserving cases," he said.
lThe British Hardware Federation represents the farm machinery trade through its subsidiary BAGMA. *