Part of 1. Questions to the Minister for Environment, Energy and Rural Affairs – in the Senedd at 1:51 pm on 17 July 2019.
I have to say, in response to your first comment there about the take-up of the benchmarking, the question is—well, you're blaming the farmers again, aren't you? And that's the culture of this Government: it's blame the farmers, it's point the finger at the farmers. Okay, the take-up wasn't there, but are you not reflecting as to why that was the case? Maybe it wasn't presented properly, maybe it wasn't the most appropriate way to do it. But it's the default position of this Government to blame the farmers, and I really—[Interruption.] I really do feel that that's a shame.
We've seen it with the TB stuff as well. I hear Members—well, I'm not sure what they're saying, but they're making noises. With the TB stuff, in, I think it was, the last statement you made, you were telling farmers that they really have to work harder, really try harder to stop this happening. Yet they're seeing this Government not utilising all of the tools that they could utilise, that are being utilised in other countries. So, surely, you have to admit that that adds to the feeling of frustration, to the feeling of despondency, ultimately leading to despair and mental health issues, on those farms where they do come across or find themselves being locked down by bovine TB.
Now, add to all of that, of course, Brexit, and a dark picture gets even darker still. If the prospect of a 'no deal' is increasingly likely at the moment, then you have already warned us, and I'll quote, that:
'A "no deal" would be absolutely catastrophic for farming, for farming families and for our communities in Wales', and I don't see anything there that I disagree with. You, as a Welsh Government, have to commit to doing absolutely everything you can to mitigate the impacts of Brexit, but particularly of a 'no deal' Brexit, so will you today commit, in the event of a 'no deal' Brexit, to diverting all of the staffing and financing resources that you have as a department to try to mitigate the effects of that 'no deal' Brexit? That would mean, of course, pausing the consultations, such as the 'Sustainable Farming and our Land' consultation, so that this Government strains every sinew to protect the sector and the rural communities that we all hold so dear.