Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 2:55 pm on 15 February 2022.
I'd like to ask for a statement from the Trefnydd in her role as Minister for rural affairs and agriculture. The Australian High Commissioner to the UK will be visiting Anglesey this week. I always enjoy welcoming visitors to the island, of course, but George Brandis will be meeting with farmers who will be very eager, I'm sure, to raise their concerns about the impact of a trade deal between the UK and Australia post Brexit.
Farmers tell me regularly that they are concerned about this. The agricultural unions say that they have difficulty finding anything in the trade agreement that could help Welsh farmers, and that, indeed, more than anything, they see it as something that benefits those in Australia who would be in competition with Welsh farmers . So, can I have a statement from the Minister on the steps that are being taken to try and safeguard Welsh farmers from the threat that this trade deal between the UK and Australia represents to them?