Rural Development

Part of 2. Questions to the Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd – in the Senedd at 2:27 pm on 15 February 2023.

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Photo of Jane Dodds Jane Dodds Liberal Democrat 2:27, 15 February 2023

Good afternoon, Minister. Just to continue that theme around rural development, we know that the lion's share of RDP actually came from the EU, so Brexit coupled with the Australian and New Zealand trade deal is further evidence, if we needed it, that the Tories are indeed bad news for farmers and for Wales. [Interruption.] And I do wish that they would take some responsibility for their role in taking us out of the EU, and the effect on our farming communities.

The Agriculture (Wales) Bill is an opportunity to reset the dial and to produce solutions for Wales made in Wales. That same approach needs to be applied to the rural development programme. Unions have raised concerns about the governance and implementation of the RDP, and indeed their concerns were justified following an Audit Wales report in summer 2020. We hopefully can't afford to make those mistakes again, particularly at a time when money is so tight. So, I wonder if I could ask you what plans you have to ensure that the RDP programme going forward is robust, and what your vision is for developing our rural communities. Thank you. Diolch yn fawr iawn.