Tuesday 17th October saw the Minister for Finance, Rebecca Evans deliver a statement to the Welsh Parliament outlining cuts to several Welsh Government portfolios to address a significant shortfall in the wider Welsh budget. As a result, the Rural Affairs revenue budget has been revised down by £17.3m, while the Rural Affairs capital budget will decrease by £20.2m.
NFU Cymru has said that these cuts will place further financial challenges on farm businesses who continue to deliver for the people and communities of Wales.
Responding to today’s announcement, NFU Cymru Deputy President Abi Reader said: “It is a real worry for the industry to see this loss to the Rural Affairs budget today. It’s important to note that these cuts come against a backdrop of funding to farmers having effectively fallen by 30% over the past decade as a result of inflation.
“The entire Rural Affairs budget, including agriculture, currently makes up just 2% of Welsh Government spending. For this, farmers manage 80% of the land area of Wales, underpin an £8.5 billion food and farming sector and make an unparalleled contribution to the economic, environmental, social and cultural wellbeing of rural Wales – we believe this represents a good return on investment.
Unprecedented challenges
“Welsh farming is facing unprecedented challenges, with input costs now 40% higher than they were in 2020. At the same time, farmers need to continue to produce high quality safe and affordable food for all in society, helping to meet both domestic and global security challenges, while simultaneously caring for our farmed environment and working towards our ambition of net zero agriculture. At a time when our farmers are facing a number of high-priority demands, our government has today cut our budget by 7.8%
“The document we have seen today provides only an overview of the main outcomes of the review, with further details of precisely where the axe is to fall within the Rural Affairs budget due to be confirmed in February. It does appear, however, that the Rural Investment Programme will bear the brunt of the cuts. This programme supports investment in the environment and climate change through productivity improvements on farm, such as supporting farmers to undertake water quality improvements on farm. Welsh Government’s own impact assessment figures suggest that up-front investment in infrastructure to meet the Welsh Government’s own water quality regulations was estimated at £360m - and that was prior to the inflationary pressures we have seen these past two years. It is really concerning to see that it appears that funding from this budget line now appears to be cut.
Concerns raised
“NFU Cymru has consistently raised concerns about the delivery of Rural Development funding, initially under EU programmes and more recently under the Rural Investment Support Schemes. We would reiterate our call for an independent review into Welsh Government’s delivery of Rural Development funding.”