Farmers gather in mass protest outside the Senedd in Cardiff Bay
Farmers have started to descend on the Welsh parliament on Wednesday in protest at a proposed overhaul of farming subsidies they say threatens the industry.
Welsh farmers objecting to the Welsh Labour government’s proposals to require more land to be set aside for environmental schemes have held a series of protests across the country in recent weeks.
The latest demonstration outside the Senedd in Cardiff Bay on Wednesday is expected to be the largest yet, with thousands of people set to attend.
South Wales Police has said it is aware of the protest and asked those coming not to bring tractors.
The protesters are objecting to the sustainable farming scheme (SFS), which is currently under consultation, which would require 10% of a farmer’s land to be covered in trees in exchange for future funding.
Farming leaders say the scheme could result in 5,500 job losses.
The Welsh government insists it is listening to farmers’ concerns and changes can be made.
Those demonstrating have seen the support of the prime minister, Rishi Sunak, who told a gathering outside the Welsh Conservative conference last week that “we’ve got your back”.
Speaking ahead of the demonstration, Andrew RT Davies, leader of the Welsh Conservatives, said: “Farmers in Wales are sending the message that enough is enough.
“The Sustainable Farming Scheme will have a devastating impact on our farming communities, and farmers are rightly not prepared to take it lying down.”
Rhun ap Iorwerth, leader of Plaid Cymru, has said the government should pause introducing the scheme and reflect on the arguments that have been made during the consultation.
A Welsh Government spokesperson said: “Farming is very important to Wales and our economy and we want a successful future for Welsh farming.
“We have had a seven-year conversation with farmers to design future farming support and we are committed to continuing to work with farmers to develop the Sustainable Farming Scheme.
“This is a genuine consultation and no decisions will be taken on any element of the proposal, including how we achieve the requirement for habitat and trees, until we have conducted a full analysis of the consultation responses.
“We have been clear we expect changes to be made following the consultation, and we will continue to listen.
“The First Minister and Rural Affairs Minister provided an update yesterday on a number of key areas to support the sector.”
Superintendent Esyr Jones said: “South Wales Police respects the right to peaceful protest and we are in discussions with the organisers to ensure that the protest takes place safely, lawfully with minimum disruption to the wider public.
“While there is an agreement to facilitate protest activity outside the Senedd, I would urge protesters not to bring tractors or other agricultural vehicles to the protest. There are concerns that they pose a risk to the safety of other road users and restrict the movement of emergency services in a busy city environment.”
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I can hear one now
“get your squirrel, tasty cooked squirrel, get your squirrel on a stick”
The way things are going you’ll be eating squirrel, lots of it, if things carry on as they are shaping up. The direction of travel is very ominous.
We shot our nation in the foot with Brexit. I hear stories that don’t make mainstream press of people that cannot afford to eat, that is why we have more food banks than ever. People now cannot aford to buy the farmers food. I am not sure what impact this will have on Wales but we are already seeing empty shelves and limited selection. The UK as a whole has never fed itself, it never will. Trade is how we get that extra in but we chose to make it a lot more expensive. EU has just passed a similar… Read more »
Haven’t seen any food-banks outside Menai Bridge Waitrose, just Big Issue sellers, yes…Tatws Bryn am byth…
Yawn 🥱
Are there any trees in sight of the Senedd or just the remains of the Northern Meadows old Oak tree ?
Trees are for rural areas. These wallies are chopping trees down whereever they can find them in Cardiff and its immediate environs. And don’t forget the 100’s of 1000’s of trees felled to make way for this government’s version of the totem poles! Policies not thought through and a complete mess of pet projects.
And Drakeford is telling Brussels that the farmers of Cymru have found the Brexit bonus hidden among his Shireunicorns and Welsh Cob nutcases…
What the …. is he talking about, is he after a job…!
We need to support our farmers.
They produce our homegrown food.
It is about food security.
There is a lot of land available for growing trees and for wildlife. This land is not being used for farming and is ex-industrial land that is empty, some has been empty for years.
But they aren’t giving us food security.
Welsh farmers produce a lot of heavily subsidised lamb, beef and dairy (mostly for export) but hardly any fruit and veg except for potatoes.
If the UK ever found itself in a repeat of World War 2 the export market for lamb, beef and dairy would collapse and Wales would not be able to feed itself.
If Welsh farmers are serious about giving us food security they would produce a more diverse range of food.
Of course we should support the farmer’s.. But this protest is being hijacked by the Tories.. On the radio this morning the proposals were referred to as ‘blanket’. Where have we heard that before. Then Wales was referred to as a principality!!!!. How many farms meet the proposals already?
How many farmers are happy with the proposals.
Why haven’t the UK Government kept their promise of maintaining the level of subsidy that came from Europe.
As much as i want to see Wales free from rule from England i would prefer the U K to be ruled by Labour than the arrogant ignorant Tories but Drakford with some of his clowns are Labours Achilles heel
Give me Prof. Drakeford over Mr starmer any- and every-day!
A seven year consultation then force farmers to submit to an unacceptable agreement, this seems to be the MO of this government say one thing do another. It seems they have not listened to the farmers at all, Is it now a case that any business receiving a subsidy from the senedd must agree to an environmental penalty.