A RIBBLE Valley farmer has been chosen to fight for the rights of Britain's livestock farmers.

Thomas Binns, 43, of Hecklin Farm, Downham, has been elected chairman of the National Farmers' Union livestock board.

Mr Binns, who has 2,500 breeding and 100 cows on his 1,600 acre farm, will now represent the needs of cattle and sheep farmers on a national level.

A farmer of 25 years' experience, Mr Binns is already an NFU council member and has been Lancashire's representative on the union's ruling body for a number of years.

Pledging to help cut the cost of government farming regulations, he also hopes to bolster consumer confidence in British meat.

Mr Binns said: "It's a privilege to lead the livestock section of the NFU on a national scale and I'm looking forward to it.

"I will be focusing on the market place, because that's where the returns for the future lie for all livestock farmers. I believe that red meat needs to be marketed better and that we must continue to build on consumer confidence in the product.

"As livestock chairman I also want to support farmers to enable them to meet environmental demands while building a sustainable livestock sector. That work needs to be communicated to our customers. All this is in addition to the day to day issues that all livestock farmers face it's a big agenda."

The NFU is split into different fields livestock, dairy, crops, horticulture and poultry. Mr Binn's position will see him tackle Defra, the Department of the Environment, Farming and Rural Affairs, on a number of issues including subsidies, farming regulations and disease control.

Jim Birkett, the NFU's current Lancashire County chairman, said: "I'm highly delighted, Thomas is extremely knowledgeable when it comes to technical issues.

"Farmers in the North West will benefit from having him as the national livestock board chairman as he knows our farming, our systems and the areas of our business."