RURAL jobs and investment in the rural economy will be at risk if ministers do not draw up plans for coping with a British withdrawal from the European Union.

Mark Bridgeman, vice-president of the Country Land and Business Association (CLA), has warned the situation is too serious to leave to chance.

The organisation represents thousands of landowners, farmers and rural businesses across Yorkshire and the North-East and published a new report – "Leave or Remain: The decisions that politicians must make to support the rural economy" – on Wednesday.

It calls on ministers to give immediate commitments to farmers and rural businesses if the June 23 referendum votes to leave.

The report follows ministers saying they are not drawing up a "Plan B" for farming should the vote be to leave.

Mr Bridgeman, who runs a mixed farm and diversified businesses near Alnwick, said Britain's rural economy had been shaped by agricultural and environmental policies drawn up at EU level.

"For more than 40 years the EU has provided the regulatory framework that governs the environment, trading relationships and the way businesses operate, and is the basis of significant investment decisions," he said.

"If the UK votes to leave, there are immediate commitments that will need to be made by government to ensure the continued health of farming and the wider rural economy.

"The Government may not wish to reveal its plans before polling day, but it is critical to know that the right plans are being formed. Failure to plan for Brexit will put rural jobs and investment in the rural economy at serious risk – we cannot leave plans that are this important to chance."

The report lists the key elements Government should be planning for, whatever the outcome of the referendum:

n Trade – securing access to EU markets for UK agricultural products.

n Direct payments – allocating a national budget which ensures payments that enable land managers to care for the environment.

n Labour – a mechanism for farmers and other rural businesses to continue to access the workforce they need.

On trade, Mr Bridgeman said if the UK votes to leave, ministers must start immediate negotiations to secure tariff free access to the EU for UK agricultural and other products. "This is vital trade for sustaining our rural economy," he said.

On direct payments, he said farmers have budgeted to receive them to the end of 2020. A vote to leave would require ministers to confirm a UK Agricultural Policy to ensure the necessary investment in farming and land management continues outside the CAP to 2020 and beyond.

He said: "Every day that passes, after a vote to leave, that ministers do not give reassurances will fuel uncertainties and compound the wider crisis we are facing across our farming sector."

Almost £4bn a year is invested via the EU into supporting agriculture, environmental management and the wider rural economy. The CLA says the benefit to the UK economy is £10bn, and that it sustains more than 370,000 jobs. "That investment must continue whether we are in or out of the EU," said Mr Bridgeman.

On labour, he said workers from the EU play a vital role in the rural economy. "If the UK votes to leave, there must be a plan in place that gives agriculture in particular access to the labour it needs," he said.

Summing up, Mr Bridgeman said: "If the UK votes to leave, the uncertainties for farming and other rural businesses are immediate. If we vote to remain, there are still critical commitments that ministers will need to make."