Diolch, acting Llywydd. And for the record, I would like to declare that I am a practicing farmer—in fact, I'm looking at cattle outside the window as I sit here. Can I thank my colleague Sam Kurtz for bringing forward this important and very timely debate? Quite frankly, food security is something that many of us have taken for granted. As a society, we've generally become accustomed to going into a supermarket, doing our weekly shop and then going back home without much thought as to where our food has come from and how it's been produced. But recent events have created a perfect storm and brought food security into sharp focus. The COVID-19 pandemic has caused havoc for supply chains across the world and this has had an impact on the availability of products here in Wales. We're also starting to see the impacts of the horrific and unnecessary Russian invasion of Ukraine, increasing the price and limiting the availability of imports of raw ingredients.

I do regret that the Labour amendment has sought to blatantly politicise the current issue, and the language used is unhelpful at a time in which people are looking for answers from all Governments. I also think that the Government amendment takes a more long-term view of the issue and fails to mention immediate steps that need to be taken to address issues facing many people at the moment. And so, it is in this regard that I support calls, as stated in the motion before us, for greater co-operation across Governments and the food and agricultural sectors through a food summit. This will help us to assess the levels of Wales's food security as well as looking for opportunities to mitigate some of the issues that we're currently facing.

As I've previously argued in this Chamber, there are still concerns amongst farmers that the future farming support scheme pivots too much towards paying for public goods, with a lack of recognition of the importance of supporting those producers in Wales who are trying to produce high-quality, affordable and sustainable food for our communities. We also need to relax some of the barriers facing farmers to enable them to use more of their land for food production. Arable farmers are expected to leave a proportion of their land fallow, but with inputs and overheads increasing at an alarming rate, many farmers are not going to be able to maintain current production levels. And so, releasing land will help to make up for that shortfall in some way and allow farmers to diversify a little more.

Finally, Llywydd, I would like to reiterate the need for a stronger legislative basis for the food system in Wales. During the development of my food Bill proposal, I have repeatedly heard that different parts of the food system don't always speak to each other, and that food governance and the wider strategy need to improve if we are to meet the needs of current and future generations. And I think that recent events have shown how we need structures in place that can bring together local, regional and national producers, as well as public bodies, to drive forward strategic planning and to encourage more localised sustainable and resilient supply chains. I look forward to discussing these issues with Members and stakeholders as my Bill progresses through the Senedd in the future.

To finish, Llywydd—acting Llywydd, sorry—we are living in a fraught period with a series of unprecedented events coalescing to create challenges that we haven't faced in decades. There is no one solution; instead, we need a package of measures to help alleviate the food security issues that we are currently experiencing. We clearly have to boost the resilience of local supply chains and take steps to reduce our resilience on imports from other countries, particularly those in politically unstable areas of the globe. And this is where we need the legislative framework in place to create a coherent direction of travel for the food sector in Wales, removing barriers facing Welsh producers to help them meet the needs of Wales. I hope that all Members will back the original motion today. I know that we all feel that this is a very important area, and I just wish that politics wouldn't get in the way of something so important and we could come together and agree something as important as this motion. Diolch, acting Llywydd.