Quo vadis? Where are you going? I ponder that very question more often these days, and I’m not sure I have an answer yet. At farm level, I am pretty certain that I know what direction of travel I want to pursue. At personal level, I still end up in various rooms around the house with no idea why I went there in the first place.

But at an industry level, although I have only been involved in Scottish agriculture for a mere 12 years, for four of those I have been involved in government groups looking at the future agricultural support system. I used to think it was a great honour to be a member of these groups which gave me the opportunity to work with some fantastic individuals. But I am more and more starting to wonder whether I am instead paying the price for sins from a past life.

Several years down the line, am I any wiser now, other than to petty politics and the painfully slow pace of governmental progress? No. Do I believe I have made any difference with the countless hours I have poured into these groups? I would like to think so but I have my doubts. Do I feel optimistic about the outcome? Disheartened more than anything else.

The hunt to tick boxes appears to be of more interest than solutions that are meaningful. The can containing known issues and injustices in the current support system is enthusiastically kicked down the road because the officials who hold the power to address them do not want a headache. Yet they have the cheek to call this a ‘Just transition’. ‘Just’ to whom exactly?

The sad reality is that the many farmers and other industry representatives that I have had the pleasure of meeting and working together with over the last few years have actually come up with so many great, doable and meaningful ideas. But most of these have been slashed, disregarded and dismissed because of budget constraints, the workload it may cause for government employees and, of course, because the current IT system would not be able to cope.

In 1977, a small space probe called ‘Voyager 1’ was launched to explore the outer reaches of the solar system and the space beyond. 47 years later we are still able to communicate with Voyager 1, to the point where an error occurring earlier this year could be remotely altered and resolved. So we are able to resolve software issues in a rather aged space probe at a distance of more than 15 billion miles. But we can’t sort out the IT system in place to effectively deliver fair farm payments. Granted, the individuals working on those two systems are different people. But the software used by Scottish Government is not rocket science – pardon the pun. And yet it has caused problems from day one, been an incredible waste of taxpayer’s money and it will undoubtedly continue to drain the finances because it is so inadequate.

Isn’t it ironic that those who are stubbornly hanging onto the old IT system are pretty much the same people telling farmers that we have to change our businesses and enterprises and adopt new technology and get rid of problem cows to become more productive and efficient?

The same civil servants who have proven to be unable to make the necessary decisions to deliver a new scheme in a timely manner are demanding quick action from farmers to save the environment while only the smallest proportion amongst them will have changed their own personal lifestyle and curbed back their holidays abroad to do their bit for the climate and wildlife.

The amount of time that has been wasted going around in circles about how to move forward is incredible. To think how much they could have achieved in the time they have spent talking about how difficult it is to change current schemes, we would probably be halfway there already. Imagine sitting at home and spending the summer talking to your neighbour about how difficult it is to clip strong tups instead of just accepting that it is going to be hard but necessary work and getting on with the job. That’s what it currently feels like – there is so much time spent defending their inaction on current scheme issues. Will I be allowed to get away with not adjusting my business as long as I prepare a fancy powerpoint?

In my humble and probably still naïve opinion, there are many root problems at play here. Having worked as a civil servant for several years back in Switzerland, I can safely say that somebody in that position enjoying evenings and weekends off and several weeks of paid holiday per year and regular wage increases to keep up with inflation and the certainty of a decent pension, has absolutely no concept of what it means to dedicate and commit your whole life to feeding an increasingly ungrateful and unappreciative society and yet to keep doing it because the work needs to be done. And the greatest thing about such a job? There is pretty much zero comeback on me if the work I carry out fails a whole industry, causes mass investment stagnation because nobody has a clue what to do with major business decisions, leads to mental health problems and start-up farms having to give up because they cannot keep going year after year without the same support as the established farmer.

When the farmer-led groups first published their findings and recommendations, there was enthusiasm within the farming industry – not necessarily excitement about once again being blamed for ruining the environment, but about the fact that we may finally be able to shine a spotlight on the good we already do (because feeding society is apparently not enough…).

Unfortunately our officials have dragged their heels and stifled the industry’s potential to prove itself, its enthusiasm all but eroded. In the end, their pensions and holidays won’t be affected, but our fundamental livelihoods will be.

I ask you, Scottish Government, quo vadis?