ABSTRACT
The determination by policy makers in the early years after 1945 to build on the commitment to agriculture which had been made in wartime was understandably seen also as a commitment to a broader rural economy. The general view followed the tenor of the Scott Report: a healthy farming industry was a sine qua non not only for national food policy and for proper landscape protection, but was also essential for a revival of rural economic fortunes. Agriculture was seen, not just as the major employer in the countryside, but also as the focus for economic activity, with rural industry and crafts providing the necessary service and support. Even as perceptive a commentator as C.S.Orwin clearly viewed the revival of farming as the central plank for rural reconstruction (Orwin, 1945).
