NFU president Nigel Miller has said one of the outcomes of the Scottish Independence referendum must be a boost for Scottish farming, food and drink.

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In the event, Scots voted against independence by a margin of ten points; 55 percent of voters opposed independence. Prime Minister David Cameron this morning promised greater devolution, allowing the Scottish parliament more power, in response to the close margin.  

Farmers tended to side with the 'Better Together' campaign in debates ahead of the referendum, commonly expressing concerns over currency in an independent Scotland, membership of the EU, access to markets and timescales for constitutional change.

Speaking on Friday morning, NFU Scotland President Nigel Miller said, "The referendum kindled an unprecedented engagement with politics across rural and urban Scotland.  The decision to remain within the Union has been made and that must now provide the platform for Scotland to move on. From our perspective, it is imperative that in moving forward, Scotland fulfils the huge potential within our farming and food and drink sectors. 

"Further powers for Scotland have been promised.  Clarity on the scope of those powers and timescale for delivery will be important if momentum for positive change is to be maintained. There is to be a debate in Westminster on 16 October to consider extra devolved powers for Scotland, a white paper by the end of November and draft legislation by January 2015.  

"Even before the vote was known, there was recognition that we were on the threshold of an era of change."

Speaking in his constituency of Moray just days before the referendum, Rural Affairs Secretary Richard Lochhead argued that independence would have transformed Scotland's politicians from "lobbyists into negotiators" on the European stage. He claimed, "I cannot recall one occasion in my seven years where the UK has used its votes [in Europe] for Scotland."