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<p>The Government is committed to helping rural businesses prosper.</p><p> </p><p>Among
other measures, Defra has launched the £110 million Rural England Prosperity Fund
to help new and existing rural businesses to develop new products and facilities that
will be of wider benefit to the local economy as well supporting new and improved
community infrastructure. The fund is being delivered by local authorities in eligible
areas and we confirmed their allocations in April 2023 so that they can begin implementation.</p><p>
</p><p>We also believe there is a huge opportunity for the agriculture and horticulture
sectors to improve their competitiveness – developing the next generation of food
and farming technology, adopting the latest techniques and investing in skills and
equipment.</p><p> </p><p>In November 2021 we opened the Farming Investment Fund which
is providing grants to farmers, foresters and growers (including contractors to these
sectors) so that they can invest in the equipment, technology and infrastructure that
will help their businesses to prosper, while improving their productivity and enhancing
the environment. Following Round 1 of the Farming Equipment and Technology Fund we
have already provided funding of more than £33 million to 3,200 farmers.</p><p> </p><p>The
Farming Innovation Programme is helping to drive innovations by providing £270 million
of funding to support farmers, growers, foresters, and other businesses in England
to develop innovative ways to increase productivity and environmental sustainability,
as well as helping them to decarbonise by researching and developing new technologies,
processes and practices.</p><p> </p><p>Through the Resilience Fund farmers and land
managers in England can access free business support and advice. To date over 13,000
farmers have accessed this service.</p><p> </p><p>More widely the Government is taking
steps to improve digital connectivity, a vital step to boost rural productivity. The
Government is investing £5 billion through the Project Gigabit programme to deliver
gigabit-capable connectivity to hard-to-reach premises, in line with our commitment
to reach 85% of UK premises with gigabit connectivity no later than the end of 2025
and as close as possible to 100% as soon as possible after that. The £1 billion Shared
Rural Network programme is on track to deliver its target to reach 95% of UK landmass
by the end of 2025, and further coverage improvements in the more hard-to-reach areas
will continue to be delivered until the start of 2027.</p>
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