Farmers would strongly support a farmers’ political party should one emerge nationally, the latest Irish Farmers Journal survey has revealed. When asked if they would give their first preference vote to a farmers’ party, 72% of respondents, almost three-quarters, said they would be likely to. Of those, 28% said they would be highly likely to. Only 7% said they would be highly unlikely to, with a further 10% unlikely to, leaving 11% as indifferent.

The overwhelming support for a farmers’ party was consistent across all farm sectors. Some 74% of dairy farmers said they were likely to give their first preference vote to such a party compared to 69% of tillage farmers. Seventy-one per cent of suckler and sheep farmers would give a farmers’ party their first preference vote, as would 73% of cattle finishers.

The idea of an Irish farmers’ party has been mooted regularly since the astonishing rise of the BBB (Farmer Citizen Party) in the Netherlands in March.

Some of Ireland’s 23 independent TDs, particularly Roscommon-Galway TD Michael Fitzmaurice, have openly discussed forming a political party or movement.

Just over 1,700 farmers responded to this question in the Irish Farmers Journal reader survey, validated by ifac.