The government is promising help for farmers who have been hit by this year’s poor harvests.

Months of rain has meant harvesting machinery hasn’t been able to get onto soggy ground, and farms have been left facing the choice of letting crops rot or harvesting them wet.

But this week saw the first real dry spell since the TT, and many farmers have been eager to get the crops in quickly.

On Talking Heads today, Agriculture Minster Phil Gawne told Stuart Peters his department would do whatever it could to help: "It is, as ever, quite a difficult time out there for farmers and the thing the department is very keen to let the farmers know is that we are going to do everything we can to help.

"I know we've had some very successful discussions already with the Farmers' Union and with Laxey Glen Mills about possible things we can actually do, and real hard decision taken that can actually, and will, help farmers, at least in the short term."