The Rural Economy Research Group (RERG) is a policy group of informed individuals and Parliamentarians highlights the importance of the rural economy and aims to restore it to the centre of both political and academic debate. The severe inequalities between urban and rural economies in the UK is due to that latter being too often ignored by policymakers and this is something the group seeks to remedy.

The Group was originally established by the late Lord Wade of Chorlton over 20 years ago, together with eminent academics from some of the UK’s leading universities to restart the discussion on rural economic issues.

Our purpose is to ensure policymakers can hear from experts both inside and outside the agricultural sphere, who could make recommendations to ensure sustained growth of the rural economy.

The Group meets three times annually in Parliament. It will be a forum for ideas that will feed directly into policy recommendations to the newly elected Government. Bolstered by leading academics and businesses in the sector, the RERG will also commission research for policymakers, providing legislators with statistics on how policies are working on the ground.