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Agricultural Policy

Agriculture and, particularly, the family farm are the backbone of Welsh rural life. Farming is not only a business to make money, but a way of life that, in much of rural Wales, has served to sustain other countryside businesses. One must remember that such businesses are part of a system in which one aspect is dependent on the other. The health of farming sustains the community and has also been vital in sustaining, preserving and developing our language and culture. Therefore, for many reasons, we need to sustain and develop a healthy, flourishing farming industry. I hardly need repeat the genuine worries of many in our farming communities, because we have heard them for a long time, but the reason why they reappear is that such concerns are not assuaged and people are not convinced. Suffice it to say that farming in Wales is still in some danger, with an ageing work force, insufficient incomes and uncertain futures for new entrants. I am glad that Welsh farmers are a resilient and hard-working bunch—a group of people who will not give up easily—and I am proud that my party has consistently fought for better conditions for farmers and a brighter future for the industry. The majority of agricultural policy in Wales is rightly devolved, as has been noted. It has been handled exceptionally well in the near past—some would argue that it is perhaps not being handled quite so effectively now, but there we are. The most important issue facing Welsh agriculture is CAP reform. Within that, the Welsh national interest is sometimes—perhaps often—different from the British interest, and I listened carefully to earlier exchanges on that matter. We have an industry of small farmers and families who make their livelihood from the land, while in particular parts of England, farms are often far larger. They are almost agri-businesses, and their interests are different. Direct payments account for about 80% of farmers’ incomes in Wales. The annual direct payments to Welsh farmers of £280 million represent a huge amount of money going into rural or marginal areas. Such places are, to be frank, areas of poverty. This round of CAP reform therefore has great significance for the industry for the foreseeable future—over the next decade. As the Minister of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, said earlier—he conceded this, in fact—the Conservative party has long favoured cutting CAP payments and trusting to competition, which might favour large-scale farmers. However, such farmers are very much in the minority in Wales, which is one reason why Welsh interests and those in the UK might not always coincide. The Liberal Democrat 2010 manifesto also argued for changes to CAP structures, albeit without explaining precisely how they would benefit small farmers.