Why were sheep released in Central London this summer?
It's not everyday that one is cycling down Embankment and is distracted the various iterations of 'baaas' from a small flock of sheep (yes, you read that right!). That was the position I indeed found myself in on August 19th of this year. Cycling has taken off over the last decade as a convenient and healthy way to get around, so I did expect a bit of the old 'green country vibes'. Yet I certainly did not expect to find a meeting of sheep just south of Whitehall (between Big Ben and Trafalgar Square). Although, in retrospect, this is just down the road from Horse Guards Parade, so maybe austerity had forced the Household Cavalry to swap the horses for a smaller and cheaper alternative. This didn't seem likely, although I would suggest it would definitely boost tourism and British lamb exports post-Brexit. Indeed, Brexit was the reason why the sheep had gathered here. In fact, they had been brought to the location by a handful of People's Vote PR Gurus and a group of influential agricultural economists.
Although I was on the way to a meeting (in my life of business and 'marketing consultancy'), but it is hard not to be distracted by this quirky event. Therefore, I squeezed between the small group of photographers and managed to get a few little videos of the sheep. Fortunately, they were not 'let loose', as one of my video captions suggests, but being carried around by what I presume are relatively experienced sheep handlers. Although I cannot say for sure how long it takes to be trained in this art, I can say that they seemed content and under control. Can't say how content, as they refused to fill in a brief well-being questionnaire. I'll let you know if they give their permission, but I assume they are still suspicious of EU GDPR legislation.
The stunt was carried out for a serious reason. Despite promises of the leave campaign, farmers have become increasingly worried about No-Deal resulting in a loss of CAP (Common Agricultural Policy) subsidies and an increase in tariffs for post-October 31st exports to the EU. As a result, the Farmers For a People's Vote group was launched, and sheep in Westminster was a good PR method to promote the concerns of the sector. I am surprised that the flock weren't nominated to carry out the Brexit negotiations, but luckily we have Boris Johnson's hair, so we are almost there by default. On a serious note, the sector remains worried that No-Deal threatens the 14,000 businesses in UK Agrifood, which supports 500,000 jobs. This is something which wasn't mentioned by Farage in the Leave campaign, who conveniently chose to focus on fishing quotas (fishing only represents 0.2% of UK GDP). Farming by contrast, contributes £8 billion to UK GVA (Gross Value Added), which comes to 1.7%. Of course, nothing like services and a fair bit less than manufacturing, but still vital. It also has implications for keeping the countryside environment healthy (lower subsidies may mean more reliance on damaging pesticides/fertislisers) and overall UK Food Security (40% of UK Food is imported, carrying risks amidst trade wars and climate change).
Check out the event here:
Although I was on the way to a meeting (in my life of business and 'marketing consultancy'), but it is hard not to be distracted by this quirky event. Therefore, I squeezed between the small group of photographers and managed to get a few little videos of the sheep. Fortunately, they were not 'let loose', as one of my video captions suggests, but being carried around by what I presume are relatively experienced sheep handlers. Although I cannot say for sure how long it takes to be trained in this art, I can say that they seemed content and under control. Can't say how content, as they refused to fill in a brief well-being questionnaire. I'll let you know if they give their permission, but I assume they are still suspicious of EU GDPR legislation.
The stunt was carried out for a serious reason. Despite promises of the leave campaign, farmers have become increasingly worried about No-Deal resulting in a loss of CAP (Common Agricultural Policy) subsidies and an increase in tariffs for post-October 31st exports to the EU. As a result, the Farmers For a People's Vote group was launched, and sheep in Westminster was a good PR method to promote the concerns of the sector. I am surprised that the flock weren't nominated to carry out the Brexit negotiations, but luckily we have Boris Johnson's hair, so we are almost there by default. On a serious note, the sector remains worried that No-Deal threatens the 14,000 businesses in UK Agrifood, which supports 500,000 jobs. This is something which wasn't mentioned by Farage in the Leave campaign, who conveniently chose to focus on fishing quotas (fishing only represents 0.2% of UK GDP). Farming by contrast, contributes £8 billion to UK GVA (Gross Value Added), which comes to 1.7%. Of course, nothing like services and a fair bit less than manufacturing, but still vital. It also has implications for keeping the countryside environment healthy (lower subsidies may mean more reliance on damaging pesticides/fertislisers) and overall UK Food Security (40% of UK Food is imported, carrying risks amidst trade wars and climate change).
Check out the event here:
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