SINCERE thanks are due to The Herald for giving prominence to the dire situation facing Scotland's farmers (“The tragic reality of SNP’s farming subsidy disaster”, The Herald, February 17). The IT debacle has been a real mess from the start with promises that next year everything will be sorted out. The taxpayers' money that has been wasted on this system could easily have paid farmers and crofters their subsidies on time, instead of continually sending out letters to inform us that, if we fill in another form, we can get a loan to keep things going. What other business would put up with this debacle? The paperwork is endless and I had even to take copies of our farm movements book, market, transport and feed invoices to our local Scottish Government office in Ayr today to prove that we had sheep on the land last year – these details having already been included in the annual census.

Farmers tend to living creatures which need to be fed and cared for every day of the year. It is not possible to shut them off like machines until they can afford to get them up and running again. Following the atrocious weather over the past year, feed costs have rocketed and there is never a guarantee that an early, dry spring is coming. If politicians were invited to do a month’s hard graft on the land, coping with these circumstances, they might realise what it is like to live in a real world.

Helen Stewart ("Wind of change is blowing misery to the traditional hill farmer's life", The Herald, February 17) stated exactly the reality of the effect all this is having on farming families up and down the country and how soul destroying it is for the younger generation watching the toll it is taking on their family’s health. No wonder the younger generation are not rushing to take up the challenge. This has to change.

I have been actively involved with the Church of Scotland in appointing a Pioneer Minister for the Rural Community within the Presbytery of Ayr, because of my serious concerns for the health and wellbeing of the farming community. This is already proving to be greatly appreciated by all sectors involved in the industry as people can speak privately with him, share their concerns and receive advice as to where help is available.

Every person deserves to receive a fair day’s pay for a hard day’s work. There is a fine line between too much and too little food being produced and it is imperative that people are fed. The Scottish Government needs to support the producers by action and not words.

Mrs Isabell Montgomerie,

Beechknowe Farm, Ochiltree.