Bank donates £1m to aid farmers

The bank will hand out £1m to farming charities

The Royal Bank of Scotland has announced it is donating £1m to help farmers hard hit by the foot and mouth crisis.

The money will go to charities set up to help people in rural communities suffering severe hardship and stress as a result of the outbreak.

The Edinburgh-based bank said the money will go to the national charities identified by Prince Charles, who announced on Wednesday that he is donating £500,000 to help farmers.

The prince said six charities would benefit from his donation designed to help farmers in dire straits.

Prince Charles: Made a £500,000 donation

The Royal Bank of Scotland's chairman, Viscount Younger of Leckie, said: "By any measure the agricultural industry in the UK has had to face a number of serious crises over the last few years.

"As well as taking a commercial toll on the industry, there has been a personal dimension which has led to severe hardship in many areas of the rural community."

"We are sympathetic and supportive to the businesses concerned and recognise that individual businesses are affected in different ways.

"Our relationship managers will continue to work with these businesses to provide tailor-made support."

The charities involved include the Royal Scottish Agricultural Benevolent Institution, which assists members of the farming community who are suffering particular hardship.

Nationwide launch

Other beneficiaries include organisations such as the Farm Crisis Network which provides support for farming families in stress or difficulty.

And the Addington Fund set up by the Archbishop of Canterbury to offer financial help to those most affected by the spread of the disease.

North of the Border, The Church of Scotland gave its support to the nationwide launch of the Addington Fund and expressed its sympathy for people most intimately caught up in the disease and its aftermath.

The kirk's Church and Nation Committee offered prayers for the farmers whose livelihoods are threatened and for the staff who must carry out the destruction of huge numbers of animals.