, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd
I don't disagree with anything you said. I think this is now becoming very, very urgent, and I made that very clear to Victoria Prentis at the meeting last night. I also made it very clear that whilst—. I think we're on the same page with DEFRA on this…
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd
Thank you. Well, immediately following the UK Government’s announcement to delay and redesign import controls I wrote to the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. Yesterday, I had a further meeting with the UK Government's Minister for…
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd
Thank you. The Member raises a really important point, because if we don't encourage the next generation, we won't have that prosperous and dynamic industry that we really want to see here in Wales. So, since I've been in portfolio, it's always been something…
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd
The Welsh Government continues to provide support for young entrants and those who want to enter the agricultural industry, through programmes such as Farming Connect and Venture. The proposed sustainable farming scheme will support new entrants to enter the…
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd
I haven't got a specific update, and I certainly can't give you a timescale. As I said in a previous answer, the plan is a five-year plan. We're only just into the second year of the plan, but it's certainly something that we will be monitoring very closely.
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd
Thank you. Whilst it's a very important step, I think I always maintain that the regulations I did bring in last year on pet sales didn't address all the problems associated with puppy trading. Reflecting this, we do support further measures to ensure high…
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd
Thank you. We work in partnership with the Welsh Government-funded local authority enforcement project and animal welfare organisations to monitor the effectiveness of our work to protect dogs and to consider further actions. I am supportive of further…
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd
Yes. I don't think we need to enforce the importance of prosecution; it's something that I've raised in my discussions with the police, which is obviously not a devolved area, but I've certainly had discussions with the RSPCA, and I've been out, as I suppose…
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd
Thank you. I think you raise a really important point, and that small dog I had tucked under my arm for quite a long time on that walk was one such animal that they could not rehouse. I know in Scotland they have been looking at it, and I've asked officials…
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd
Thank you. Our local authority enforcement project has contributed to significant seizures of illegally bred puppies. However, I am aware of additional pressures facing the animal rehoming sector in a post-pandemic landscape alongside the cost-of-living…
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd
Yes, I certainly do, when Jane Dodd asks a question, I expect one off you, and vice versa, on this really important issue. I'm grateful to you for raising it, as I'm sure many greyhounds are too. I thought the event that you had with Hope Rescue in the…
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd
Well, I certainly don't want to see any illegal racing. You'll be aware we've only got the one track here in Wales, and that's the one that Jane Dodds asked the original question about. My concern is about the number of greyhounds that are injured. I've seen…
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd
Diolch, Jane Dodds. You can absolutely be assured that I will be continuing to put pressure on Caerphilly County Borough Council. As you know, I wrote to the new owner of the racing track back in March. I still haven't had the courtesy of a response, even…
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd
Thank you. The programme for government and our animal welfare plan include a commitment to bring forward a national model for the licensing of animal welfare activities in Wales. It is my intention to consider greyhound racing as part of the animal exhibits…
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd
Thank you. I'm not aware, off the top of my head, of any research and development, but certainly I've had discussions with farmers. I remember one farmer in particular who was very keen to see what he could do to find a way of dealing with this silage wrap…
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd
Thank you. So, if I can answer the second part of your question first, we absolutely remain committed to supporting our farming sector to farm in the most environmentally friendly way that they possibly can, and appropriate disposing and recycling of plastics…
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd
Thank you. The proposed sustainable farming scheme will support farmers to undertake a range of actions to help them become more resource efficient. We will support farmers to take a circular approach, keeping resources and materials in use for as long as…
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd
I haven't got the figures in front of me of what the decrease we have seen in sheep scab is. I know that there was one, and I will certainly write to the Member with that. What I think is really important, if we are going to eradicate sheep scab, is that we…
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd
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…
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd
Thank you. Well, I think I should correct you when you say the Wales Audit Office criticised the rural development programme—there were literally hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of schemes, and the benefits to our rural communities I think are very…
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd
Absolutely. I obviously recognise it's a very difficult and distressing situation that has led Ukrainian people to our country and the decision to not allow home quarantining was not taken lightly. I've done it to protect both public health and the health of…
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd
I thought you'd already seen the invitation. Yes, it is the case. It's 14 July that I will be holding the first meeting, which I'm sure you will welcome. As you said, I did give assurance to the committee. It will be interesting to see. I think it was really…
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd
Thank you. I certainly will be very happy to join you in congratulating all our farmers and our fantastic Welsh food and drink producers, who've achieved such an amazing amount of exports. And you couldn't get more challenging times, could you, for our…
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd
Thank you. Alongside the basic payment scheme, I recently announced a package of support worth over £227 million for a number of schemes available to farmers across the whole of Wales. My officials will also consider derogation requests from farmers…
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd
Thank you for that. I've already met with the Hope Rescue centre. I've also met with the North Clwyd Animal Rescue centre up in north-east Wales. My officials regularly meet with the third sector to see what we can do to help people who are obviously facing…
