4. What discussions has the Minister had with the UK Government regarding the Agriculture Bill? OQ55321

Diolch. I have had regular discussions with the UK Government throughout the development of the Agriculture Bill. Powers for Welsh Ministers are included at my request and draft provisions are carefully scrutinised by officials.

Thank you very much. It was very, very disappointing that Conservative MPs representing rural constituencies in Wales, including Ynys Môn, voted recently against an amendment to the Agriculture Bill that sought to safeguard the interests of Welsh farmers. The purpose of the amendment was to ensure that imported agricultural produce under post-Brexit trade deals would have to adhere to the same animal welfare standards and environmental standards as farmers here, and certainly, without that assurance, farmers and customers are being undermined. Can I ask once again for the Minister to push again for some assurances from the UK Government that every agricultural product sold here will have to adhere to the same standards adhered to by our farmers? It's clear that Boris Johnson and his Members in Wales are willing to sacrifice the rural economy, but we in Wales, the farming sector, the unions and the politicians must do everything to withstand that.

I absolutely agree with Rhun ap Iorwerth and he has my assurance that I continue to push that. I know my colleague Eluned Morgan, who leads on the trade policy for Welsh Government, is doing the same, because obviously this fits into the trade policy area as well. I have my next DEFRA quadrilateral next week and I will continue—. And I've also written to George Eustace; I think it was about 12 June. I've not had a response to that letter yet, but I will continue to push and I will raise it at the meeting next week.

Minister, the UK Agriculture Bill, going through the UK Parliament, will of course have implications for farmers across the UK, and I understand that you intend to publish a White Paper towards the end of the year, which will set out the context for the future of Welsh farming and pave the way for an agriculture Wales Bill. Can you therefore update us on the progress of that White Paper, and when we're likely to see it published? And could you provide an update also on the discussions that you've had to date with the Welsh farming community in relation to that specific White Paper?

Thank you. So, as you say, I have committed to publishing a White Paper by the end of this year. Work was paused, probably for a couple of months at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, when officials obviously had to work in that area, but we're now back up to full capacity on that piece of work. So, you'll be aware we've had two thorough consultations, which have obviously helped us bring this paper together. Again, as part of the White Paper, we were looking at the design of our schemes. We've not been able to have those face-to-face visits that we would have wanted to see, but we're certainly able to do it online. So, that paper will be published by the end of this year. The work is now back up to the level we wanted it; obviously there's been a hiatus whilst officials have been dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. It is always, I think it's safe to say, a topic of conversation when I meet with the farming unions, and I mentioned in an earlier answer, I am meeting with the farming unions far more frequently during the pandemic. A few times we've sort of met weekly, but we're now in a rhythm of meeting fortnightly, but it's something that's always discussed. It's also something that's discussed at the EU transition round-table that I hold with stakeholders, and, again, thoroughly discussed, not just by the farming unions but by other interested parties, so including the environmental non-governmental organisations.

I agree with everybody—with Rhun particularly—that the Agriculture Bill must include legal guarantees that animal welfare environmental standards won't be cut in post-Brexit trade deals with the USA, or anybody else for that matter.

We've all seen the headlines about chlorinated chicken, but we've got issues with chicken farms in Wales, specifically in Powys, with the council just granting permission for four more farms and saying that there won't be a moratorium on planning applications. I find it particularly concerning that, in January, all planning applications that require an environmental impact assessment in Powys will be determined by just one planning officer, not the council's planning committee. National Resources Wales has previously expressed concerns about the accumulative environmental impact of chicken farms on ancient woodlands and ground water, and I've raised this issue many times myself. So, can I ask you, Minister, if you would look at the situation in Powys and assess the need for planning applications to take account of existing farms and the burden on the local environment and the community?

Thank you, Joyce Watson. If I can just say about chlorinated chicken, because this is something that many people have written to me about. It is currently banned in the EU and the Welsh Government does not accept that that position should change. So it's an opportunity for me to say that as we do move to develop trading relationships with other countries outside the European Union.

In response to your question around poultry farms, where planning permission is required for new poultry sheds they do have to consider the economic benefits and the environmental impacts of the proposals, and it does include the cumulative effect of increasing the number of developments. We are looking at how local planning authorities plan for new poultry development, and we've convened the town and country planning intensive agricultural working group to advise on how development plan policies should be prepared and the material considerations involved in determining planning applications. The planning system doesn't operate in isolation and other regulatory regimes, such as environmental permitting and statutory nuisance, will control the impact of these developments on the localities also.