Listening to the noises coming out of Whitehall, we might well assume that Sir Don Curry and his Policy Commission on the Future of Farming and Food haven't a hope of getting substantial government money to finance their radical proposals. Recent utterances from high ranking DEFRA folk, including the omnipresent Lord Whitty, are fuelling a feeling of despair among the Curry promoters. But then, given the current climate, Margaret Beckett always faced a fight to persuade the Treasury to part with significant piles of cash. Thus, we are left holding our breath until after the Government's midsummer spending review. Cash or not, should we be encouraged by the word that Tony Blair has been privately making it plain that he regards the Curry proposals as among the most important domestic issues to be set before him since he moved into Number 10? Soundbites? Or does that mean he will pull rank over the Treasury mandarins when it comes to stumping up the necessary money? At least the PM has taken the significant step of inviting food chain stakeholders to Downing Street later this month to discuss ways of taking the Curry Report forward. And, encouragingly, one official describes the meeting as being "fundamentally about action and delivery." Sir Don and his team have made it clear that implementing the proposals will be all about strong partnerships between government and the food chain. And the PM, for his part, wants to make sure that the industry is committed to the cause. Longer term, government funding will obviously be needed to deliver the more substantive changes in the Curry dossier. But more immediately, some of the market solutions, including a new Food Chain Centre, could surely be endorsed much sooner as "joint ventures" between government and industry. Hopefully, the Downing Street session will spawn a positive joint response to the partnership principles highlighted by Curry. There is no other way. {{OPINION }}