FARMING leaders have locked horns with Herefordshire Council over any sale of the authority’s smallholdings, saying a “last minute lack of transparency” left them in the dark.

As revealed by herefordtimes.com last week, opposition councillors have already attacked what they say are secret plans to sell the smallholdings – against the advice of a key committee – to pay for “disastrous financial mistakes” made over the past two years.

Now, the National Farmers Union says its members are angry at the sale by formal tender of the Nieuport Estate, nearly 400 acres of council-owned land at Almeley.

Herefordshire NFU chairman David Morgan told the Hereford Times of the real worry at the council’s apparent failure to flag-up sale plans for the smallholdings.

“I have had no answers from the council after the Nieuport estate was put on the market. It appears that they are selling the family silver,” said Mr Morgan. “Large estates like these which have tenant farms on them are essential to encourage new people into the industry. County farmers have been in touch with the authority throughout the consultation and we just feel there has been a last minute lack of transparency.”

Brockhamption farmer James Hawkins, vice-chairman of the NFU’s tenants’ group, was disappointed at the proposed sell-off.

“After all the talks we have had with the authority there has been no clear warning about the sell-off.

Like the opposition councillors, the NFU has since been told that the sale of the Nieuport estate was “in line with established council property”.

Council chief executive Chris Bull has, however, offered to look into concerns raised by the sale, which have shattered the 70 years of cross-party support that the smallholdings have had from the county’s various local authorities.

Opposition councillors say the sale was sealed behind closed doors ahead of a cabinet decision due later this month and goes directly against the recent recommendation of the strategic monitoring committee, which oversees policy, to save all of the 5,200 acre estate for the county’s future farmers.

Opposition leader Councillor Terry James said the first that most members knew of the Nieuport sale – 391 acres of pasture, arable land, and woodland at Almeley – was through an advertisement in the Hereford Times.

One farm with vacant possession, three tenanted farms, and two cottages come with the deal which also offers development rights subject to consent.

“There has been no formal notification of this decision, who made it, or how it was made. It would appear that this is asset stripping to pay for some of the disastrous financial mistakes that the council has made, like the Plough Lane offices and the IT fiasco,” said Coun James.

“Retaining smallholdings has had total cross party support over the last 70 years. It now appears that this policy has been overturned in a secret and underhand way,” he said.