Commenting on the Rural Affairs Minister’s Statement on the Future of Glastir, the Party of Wales Shadow Minister for Sustainable Communities, Energy and Food Llyr Gruffydd said:
“Glastir has been a constantly evolving programme and we hope that this statement today heralds the end of such uncertainty and that the goalposts will no longer be moved.
“Farming is a business like any other and Welsh farmers need consistency in order to plan their business effectively. It is unfortunate that the government includes vague commitments such as to retain the Entry scheme ‘for now’, which falls some way short of providing farmers with the certainty we were looking for.
“We also need clarity as to the situation of those already participating in Glastir and how these changes will affect them. The government was encouraging farmers to enrol early so it is important that they ensure these farmers are not disadvantaged by having done so.
“The Minister’s proposal to introduce a more targeted system of funding and entry criteria runs against the grain of his previous assurances that the loss to farmers of pillar one payments will be redistributed to them through pillar two. Farmers have taken a significant financial hit over the past year and many farmers will be concerned that the Minister might be looking to limit access to Glastir.”
