Some provisions of this framework Bill will replace clauses in the UK Agriculture Act 2020 that are due to expire under a sunset clause at the end of 2024. With some exceptions, these clauses mirror the powers that Welsh Ministers currently have under that UK Act. However, it should be noted that this Bill is particularly broad in scope, and it introduces some significant new elements. These new elements include prohibiting the use of snares and glue traps in Wales, and the new powers for Natural Resources Wales over forestry felling licences. And so, whilst these provisions could be argued to be agricultural in nature, they could also perhaps have been legislated for and scrutinised separately.

The Economy, Trade and Rural Affairs Committee had 14 weeks to scrutinise the general principles of this Bill. We considered all aspects of the Bill to the best of our ability in the time available. I know that the Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee has made some strong recommendations about the Welsh Government’s chosen approach to legislating in the field of agriculture, and so I will not pre-empt anything other Members may say about that, but I would like to highlight some of the policy-related matters that we identify in our report.

The Welsh Government has involved stakeholders in the development of this Bill in recent years, with a number of consultations and a co-design process. So it was initially surprising to us on the committee that there were some fundamental issues on which stakeholders still had quite divergent views. The very definition of 'sustainable land management' has proved to be a sticking point. To the lay reader there is no definition, neither bespoke nor borrowed, on the face of the Bill. The Minister’s view is that the sustainable land management objectives set out in section 1 of the Bill are the definition. And the Committee’s report sets out some strong arguments for how those objectives in section 1, and the list of purposes for support in section 8, could be strengthened. There is also some disquiet about the proposal to allow the definition of ‘agriculture’ to be amended by subordinate legislation, and we have recommended that the Minister also reviews this aspect of the Bill and seeks to allay concerns.

There also appeared to be a lack of clarity and/or a lack of understanding by stakeholders about the Welsh Government’s intentions with some of the provisions in the Bill. In particular this is the case for support for ancillary activities, and how this might benefit the agri-food supply chain. Recommendation 16 of our report asks the Minister to provide more clarity on this. It was also widely expected by stakeholders that national minimum standards would be a feature of this legislation, and there was much disappointment that this was not the case. The committee would therefore like the Minister to clearly set out her intentions for the future regulatory baseline for the sector. We have also asked that the Minister gives further consideration to animal welfare and the role of the farm vet in the new legislative framework.

From our scrutiny work it was clear that further work is needed to address concerns of tenant farmers and those who farm on common land, ensuring that they can fully access the support available under the proposed sustainable farming scheme. The needs of new entrants into the sector must also be fully supported by the Bill. We have welcomed the Minister’s commitment to further work in these areas, as monitoring the effectiveness and impact of the sustainable farming scheme will be vital.

In light of the evidence that the committee received, our report has suggested amendments to the Bill’s reporting provisions, as well as the concerns that were raised with us about data collection provisions. The Bill grants Welsh Ministers powers over marketing standards, and our inquiry raised important questions about post-EU divergence and the role of the common frameworks. In our report we have also included a recommendation about assessing the impact of trade deals on the Welsh agricultural sector.

In closing, Llywydd, I stress again that this is a wide-ranging and highly significant piece of legislation. I therefore invite all Members to consider the range of evidence and recommendations in our report, along with the views of the Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee and the Finance Committee on the Bill as introduced. As our report notes, with regard to Part 5 of the Bill, a clear majority of the committee supported the provisions to prohibit the use of snares, although there was support from two Members for the Minister to give further consideration to a highly regulated licensing system.

As I said earlier, this legislation will shape the landscape of Welsh agriculture and the environment for decades to come, and so we have to ensure that this piece of legislation is absolutely right. In taking account of the range of evidence presented to us, and our 30 recommendations, we recommend that the Senedd agrees to the general principles of this Agriculture (Wales) Bill and that it now proceeds to the second, amending stage. Diolch, Llywydd.