Part of 1. Questions to the Minister for Environment, Energy and Rural Affairs – in the Senedd at 1:49 pm on 4 March 2020.
I'm grateful for that answer, and I appreciate we're very much in the foothills at the moment, because the condition is obviously unfolding before us, but, for many rural businesses, there are very stiff penalties and sanctions if you don't hit those dates, especially with your application for single farm payment support. I use a very simple description as well about calf passports—if it's not registered within 28 days and processed, obviously then the animal is just discarded for human consumption, it is. And so, I'd be grateful, when you're in possession of better information—better-quality information, if you like, which could give indications of what measures you're putting in place to deal with maybe missed deadlines and worst-case scenarios so that people can have confidence that they will not be penalised because it is through no fault of their own—. Also, could I understand from you, Minister, how your department is interacting with the food supply chain? Because, again, if you look at the forecast ahead, with a 20 per cent absentee rate because of illness and the condition unfolding—and the peak months are May and June, we're told by the medical professionals—what work is the Welsh Government doing with food producers—and processors, importantly—to make sure that the food supply chain here in Wales is robust, and ultimately can deliver into shops and into the catering establishments that people require on a day-to-day basis?