IT is hard to imagine life without its farmers, but one day it could be a reality.

Long hours, not especially profitable returns and endless challenges – who would want to do it? Thankfully for the rest of us, our farmers still do.

Whether you’re in the farming community or just binge watch Clarkson’s farm, each year we wonder if things could get worse but this year, they have.

As well as the hot weather and drought, the flying menace of midges have brought a decimation in the form of the bluetongue virus that has reminded me of 25 years ago when the industry was brought to its knees by the destruction and rural horror that was Foot and Mouth disease.

As bluetongue disease takes hold, encouraged by the warm weather providing perfect conditions for the midges to multiply faster than a mogwai in a swimming pool, it is time for those with the power to change things to support our farmers.

Ben Maguire, the member of parliament for North Cornwall raised some interesting suggestions in a letter he has written to the government, calling for the same types of support after a flood to be offered in a drought.

It always seems that money is no object when it comes to war, weapons or governmental waste and there is likely to be some people who say there is no money to spend on helping save British farming.

But we will have bigger problems than a few extra million on the government debt if our farmers aren’t given the support they need to get through the disaster class which is bearing a toll on both their farms, animals but also their own wellbeing.

In 2008, we found the money to save the banks. Money should not be an object when it comes to helping our farmers when they need it.