Welsh Conservatives launch alternative to controversial sustainable farming scheme

Emily Price

The Welsh Conservative have launched their own farm subsidy proposal as an alternative to the Welsh Government’s controversial Sustainable Farming Scheme.

This week, Huw Irranca-Davies, the deputy first minister of Wales, confirmed a number of changes to the SFS following a backlash from farmers over tree planting requirements.

The scheme, which resulted in thousands of farmers protesting outside the Welsh Parliament in Cardiff Bay in February, was widely criticised by opposition parties and farming leaders.

Speaking from the Royal Welsh Winter Fair on Monday (November 25), Mr Irranca-Davies said the changes have addressed the needs of Welsh farmers while supporting sustainable production of food, as well as climate change and nature commitments.

Changes to the scheme include the removal of a farm-level figure for tree cover, which will be replaced with a scheme-wide target.

Clarity

Farmers will be able to decide where they want to add more trees or hedges on their land and how many, with funding to support them through the optional part of the scheme.

However, farmers who apply will still be required to manage at least 10% of their farm as habitat.

The Welsh Government says it’s now considering options to create temporary habitat to help farmers meet this requirement.

Favourable 

The Welsh Conservatives say the upgraded scheme still lacks clarity and the funding commitments famers need.

The Senedd group also attended the Winter Fair in Powys this week where they launched their own version of the SFS which they say offers a “far more favourable deal” for farmers.

The initiative was led by Shadow Rural Affairs Minister James Evans who gathered feedback over the summer via a consultation with active farmers, rural communities, conservation charities, and the public.

Actions

The MS for Brecon and Radnorshire says his group’s Welsh Farming and Countryside Scheme (WFCS) has a more streamlined structure and offers more flexibility in optional actions.

The WFCS proposes a baseline payment of 70% of the current Basic Payment Scheme to actively support the work undertaken by active farmers.

The tiered system will offer farmers the security of a guaranteed 70% baseline payment if they fulfil basic universal actions.

It also provides the option to earn up to an additional 30% by implementing specific environmental practices that might not be financially viable otherwise.

In return for this baseline payment, the scheme will offer a series of universal actions to be undertaken by all farms including benchmarking, targeted training, soil health testing, integral pest management and animal health and welfare.

The climate change budget would then be used to pay for any actions that are identified as climate change mitigation measures that are not directly related to food production, such as woodland management.

Sceptical

The final proposal is expected to be included in the group’s manifesto ahead of the Senedd Elections in 2026.

Mr Evans said:  “Whilst it is positive that there has been a more collaborative approach from the Welsh Government, there is still more ground to cover with this scheme.

“Indeed, there are still many more key decisions to be made, and there is still no payment rate attached to the scheme, making it very difficult for farmers to plan in the longer term, which continues to leave the sector in limbo.

“Unfortunately, there is still a huge rift between Labour and the farming community because of how this scheme has been developed and now the new changes to inheritance tax, so while there is some positive news today, farmers across Wales remain sceptical that this will be a scheme that works for them.

“The Welsh Conservatives have launched our own farming scheme that after a long consultation with the industry offers a far more favourable deal that works with our farmers.”