Brexit supporter Sir James Dyson’s family company receives £5m in EU farming subsidies The “outrageous” farming subsidy schemes mean the people who are getting the most are the people who need it the least

Sir James Dyson has obtained over £5m in European farming subsidies for landholdings since the 2016 referendum, as campaigners demand a limit on payments to the richest landowners.

The billionaire businessman and Brexiteer is one of England’s largest landowners. According to The Sunday Times, public funds for his farming operations – including crops for energy production – provide Mr Dyson with up to £2.6m a year.

He has justified these public subsidies for large-scale farms, but campaigners claim the current system is “grossly unfair” as smaller farmers struggle to survive.

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The vacuum cleaner mogul was an exponent for Brexit and believed Britain would flourish by setting its own trade policy and regulations.

‘A staggering hypocrite’

However, earlier this year he revealed the headquarters of his technology company would relocate to Singapore, leading to accusations of “staggering hypocrisy”.

Mr Dyson has amassed a fortune of £12.6bn and is ranked fifth in The Sunday Times Rich List. He has been purchasing farmland, with sites covering over 35,000 acres across Lincolnshire, Oxfordshire, Gloucestershire and Somerset.

His family business, Beeswax Dyson Farming, is valued at more than £500m. According to the Land Registry filings it has purchased over 20 farms and landholdings in 2018 and 2019.

Data published by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) revealed the amount it claimed in subsidies; £2.36m in the year to 2017, and £2.6m in the year to 2018.

The total sum paid out since the referendum is believed to be approximately £2.5m.

EU farming subsidies comprise the basic payment scheme for farming land, investments in forestry, and greening practices beneficial for the climate and environment. Mr Dyson has also profited from the fall of the pound since the referendum, as payments are made in euros.

A cap on the richest