RURAL Prosperity was the key focus for FUW leaders during meetings with Wales’ First Minister Carwyn Jones and UK Government Secretaries of State Michael Gove and Alun Cairns at the Royal Welsh Show.
“No event better demonstrates agriculture’s role in supporting our economy than the Royal Welsh Show, where thousands of businesses which are part of the agricultural supply chain are on display.
“For every businesses at the Royal Welsh Show this week, there are hundreds more which are also reliant on agriculture,” said FUW President Glyn Roberts.
Mr Roberts said that these key messages were acknowledged by First Minister Carwyn Jones, Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Michael Gove and Secretary of State for Wales Alun Cairns and that the Union was encouraged by discussions had in bilateral meetings with the UK and Welsh government ministers.
In addition the FUW President reinforced the point that Welsh farmers were already delivering a range of environmental benefits, and that further recognition of this would be welcome, given Mr Gove’s recent indication that future farm support should focus on the delivery of environmental outcomes.
“We need to be realistic in terms of what is allowed under WTO rules and the dangers of implementing well-meaning aspirational policies which have not been properly investigated.
“We spent around six years investigating in detail ways to implement changes to the current payment regime which minimised financial disruption and economic turmoil.
“Similar care needs to be taken in terms of proposals which could be far more devastating, and we cannot be sure what an appropriate agricultural policy will look like until we know the details of the agreements currently being hammered out with the EU and others, and the detailed modelling we have called for has been carried out,” said Glyn Roberts.
Mr Roberts added that while the important work of looking to the future continued within the FUW, a further key message stressed during meetings with ministers and politicians had been the need to secure a realistic Brexit transition period.
“We need to ensure that on day one of Brexit, and during the lengthy period it is likely to take to reach agreements with the EU, things do not look particularly different for our farmers.
“We have already called for a cross government agri summit to take place as soon as possible to address these issues and to ensure that we still have the same broad framework in terms of farm payments, devolved powers, and tariff and barrier-free access to the continental market, when we leave the European Union.”
