FARMERS from Chorley met with agriculture minister Nick Brown to tell him about the burden of red tape and financial pressure they face.

They were joined by farmers from Bolton and south west Lancashire to discuss a range of key issues with the minister at an informal breakfast meeting at Hartwood Hall Hotel in Chorley.

The farmers told him that the costs of keeping up with stringent regulations and the amount of paperwork they have to do and the strength of the pound against the Euro are very heavy burdens on an already pressured profession.

Mr Brown acknowledged their problems and said he would look into what the Government could do to alleviate these pressures.

He then travelled to the National Farmers' Union's region office in Skelmersdale to meet other farmers.

Veronica Waller, senior policy adviser for the regional NFU, said: "Lancashire farmers and growers left Nick Brown in no doubt about the pressures facing them and their concerns at the lack of confidence in the future."