Part of 2. Questions to the Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd – in the Senedd at 2:36 pm on 29 June 2022.
Well, I don't think there's any panic, and certainly, in the discussions I've had with stakeholders, with my ministerial counterparts, with the farming unions, and certainly the discussions that officials have had, I don't think 'panic' is the correct word to use at all. A lot of these levers do sit with the UK Government, such as fuel, for instance, so those discussions are ongoing. I met yesterday on another topic with the Minister of State in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and we are going to continue discussions around the fuel, food and fertiliser issues. At the Royal Welsh Show, we'll be having an inter-ministerial group meeting, where we will continue to have them.
My officials regularly attend the market monitoring group that the UK Government have pulled together with other devolved administrations so that we can monitor prices across all agricultural sectors, and, certainly, the schemes that we brought forward in February this year. And some schemes are open now; some more schemes will be opening around the £237 million I referred to in an earlier answer. Some of that funding—farmers are already saying it is helping them with their plans, particularly around nutrient management and spreading fertiliser. I mentioned in an earlier answer to Sam Rowlands that farmers that are in the Glastir scheme, for instance, can come forward with a derogation request. My understanding is, to date, nobody has yet done that, but these are all avenues that are open to them.