Farming and rural Wales

Farm support and the Sustainable Farming Scheme, bovine TB and animal welfare, farming and water quality, fishing, and rural communities.

In the Programme for Government this sits under the well-being objective Unleashing the potential of the Welsh economy, and creating good well-paid jobs.

ThemesEverything Farm support and the Sustainable Farming Scheme Bovine TB and animal welfare Farming and water quality Fishing and the marine Rural communities

Showing the theme Bovine TB and animal welfare. The Programme commitments are the brief's as a whole.

Statements and debates: 2; in the Sixth Senedd
Contributions: 167; in the Sixth Senedd
Written questions: 0; in the Sixth Senedd

How often it comes up

Jan 2024Mar 2026

167 contributions in the Sixth Senedd touched on this. The busiest month was Feb 2024, with 34.

Who raises it

Labour61%
Conservative23%
Plaid14%
Lib Dem1%
Independent1%

Share of the 138 contributions on this subject, by the speaker's party.

On this page

The debate so far
Where things stand
What the government has promised
From the Welsh Government
Key moments in the Senedd
Related votes
Who raises it
Who ministers have met
Written questions
Petitions
In committee
From Senedd Research
Latest contributions
Month by month
How this brief is put together

The debate so far

In the Seventh Senedd, the farming debate has centred on the Plaid Cymru Government's handling of the Sustainable Farming Scheme, bovine TB and the agricultural pollution rules. Opposition parties pressed for timetables and guarantees, while Welsh Labour questioned water protections and badger culling. Other threads were farmland lost to solar, livestock numbers, the summer 2026 wildfires and rural-proofing legislation.

The main arguments

Laura Anne Jones (Reform UK) said take-up of the Sustainable Farming Scheme was about 50 per cent and opposed a deeper basic payment cut. Llyr Gruffydd (Plaid Cymru) cited £1 billion over three years and said he would make the scheme more accessible. Contributions: [1][2][3]

Where the parties stand

Plaid CymruShifted
Rhun ap Iorwerth and Llyr Gruffydd said they back the family farm. They pledged multi-year funding, a red tape review, a national food strategy, science-led action on TB and a more targeted approach to nitrate rules, and said they have no agenda to cut livestock. Contributions: [1][2][3][4][5]
How this has shifted: On 2 June the pledges were multi-year funding and reviews. By 30 September Gruffydd pointed to £1 billion over three years, advance payments raised from 70 to 80 per cent, and flexibility on slurry stores.
Welsh Labour
Ken Skates, Vikki Howells and Mike Hedges criticised the lack of farming in the Government's priorities, slurry spreading changes and the prospect of a badger cull. They asked for water quality to be protected and welcomed nature-based solutions. Contributions: [1][2][3][4][5]
Welsh Conservatives
Andrew RT Davies and Paul Davies pressed for a TB plan before the Royal Welsh Show. Darren Millar wanted farmland protected from solar, and Peter Fox backed a national food strategy. Contributions: [1][2][3][4][5]
Reform UKShifted
Laura Anne Jones and James Evans called agriculture a top priority. They asked for less bureaucracy, a TB strategy with targeted wildlife control, a livestock guarantee and protection of farmland from solar. Contributions: [1][2][3][4][5]
How this has shifted: On 19 May Jones criticised the omission of agriculture from the Government's priorities. By 30 September she welcomed the nitrate rule and advance payment announcements while opposing a deeper basic payment cut.
Welsh Liberal Democrats
Jane Dodds welcomed the rural-proofing duty, noted NFU Cymru's net zero 2040 goal and said Brexit adds to red tape. She asked about working with the UK Government and who would join the wildfire work. Contributions: [1][2][3]
Wales Green Party
Paul Rock said industrialised agriculture and waste water are the two main sources of river pollution and need stronger regulation. He also asked whether required technology would disadvantage small family farms. Contributions: [1][2]

Where things stand

Statistics published by the Welsh Government. Each chart covers the years since the 2016 Senedd election, or as far back as the figures go, and marks each election since.

Total income from farming

£505 million

2025 (provisional)

A year earlier: £455 million (2024)

The income generated by farming in Wales each calendar year, including subsidies: business profits plus pay for work done by owners and other unpaid workers. In millions of pounds at current prices, not adjusted for inflation.

Farm income varies a lot from year to year with market conditions, so a change between two years should be read with care.

Source: Welsh Government, Total Income from Farming in Wales. Official statistics in development. Checked on 22 October 2026.

Show the figures

Total income from farming: every figure in the chart, newest first.
Period	Wales
2025	£505 millionprovisional
2024	£455 millionrevised
2023	£450 millionrevised
2022	£530 millionrevised
2021	£363 millionrevised
2020	£333 millionrevised
2019	£280 millionrevised
2018	£322 millionrevised
2017	£375 millionrevised
2016	£193 millionrevised

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

How we show official statistics

What the government has promised

The Programme for Government 2026 to 2030 belongs to the Seventh Senedd. Choose the Seventh Senedd to see how often each commitment has come up.

A stronger, more resilient rural Wales

Support the agriculture sector in Wales in a way that underpins the long‑term sustainability of farm businesses and protects the future of the Welsh family farm in a changing climate. We will evolve and refine the Sustainable Farming Scheme, in strong collaboration with the farming community, so that it supports a thriving agriculture sector to produce food while also progressively delivering key environmental outcomes.
Latest figure: Total income from farming, £505 million, 2025.
Read it in the Programme
Implement a new approach to managing nutrients across catchments, moving away from the “farming by calendar” approach and supporting farmers to reduce agricultural water pollution.
Read it in the Programme
Introduce a new Bovine Tuberculosis (TB) Plan, taking a holistic approach to eradication that is evidence-based and science‑led, incorporating the 3 pillars of cattle, people and wildlife.
Read it in the Programme
Develop a renewed and science‑led Animal Welfare Plan, addressing the welfare of both companion animals and farm animals.
Read it in the Programme
Support a sustainable fishing and aquaculture industry, and the communities that rely on it, as part of the food system and economy.
Read it in the Programme
Deliver a Rural Development Strategy for Wales.
Read it in the Programme
Legislate to require rural proofing of spending plans and policy programmes to ensure they are fully responsive to the needs of rural communities. Deliver a new comprehensive National Food Strategy.
Read it in the Programme
Examine options for extending permitted development rights for single dwellings and converting farm buildings for residential use to improve access to affordable housing in rural areas.
Read it in the ProgrammeAlso followed in: Housing.

Community-led planning and a "made in Wales" approach to regional development

Replace the current fragmented and overlapping approaches to marine management by delivering a Marine Planning Framework, built on genuine co‑management with fishers, environmental, community and industry stakeholders.
Read it in the Programme

Source: Welsh Government, Programme for government 2026 to 2030: New ambition for Wales, first published on 10 September 2026. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Mentions are found by matching the names of plans, bodies and schemes; a mention says nothing about progress.

Month by month

Contributions tagged in each month of the Sixth Senedd. No sittings were held in December 2024, February 2025, March 2025, April 2025, May 2025, June 2025, July 2025, August 2025, September 2025, October 2025, November 2025 and December 2025.

Show the numbers

Month	Contributions
January 2024	10
February 2024	34
March 2024	21
April 2024	10
May 2024	28
June 2024	25
July 2024	12
August 2024	0
September 2024	10
October 2024	14
November 2024	3
December 2024	No sittings
January 2025	0
February 2025	No sittings
March 2025	No sittings
April 2025	No sittings
May 2025	No sittings
June 2025	No sittings
July 2025

How this brief is put together

This brief follows the Programme commitments listed above and tags the record with the phrases below. Keyword matching can miss business that discusses the issue in other words, and can tag a passing mention.

Show the phrases it uses

A contribution is tagged when its English text contains one of these phrases. Capital letters don't matter, except in abbreviations, which must match exactly. It is also tagged when the title of the agenda item or question it was part of contains one, as long as the contribution is at least 30 words long. The brief is also tagged whenever one of its themes is.

Phrases for the brief as a whole

“farming”
“farmers”
“farmer”
“agriculture”
“agricultural”
“farm”
“farms”

Farm support and the Sustainable Farming Scheme

“Sustainable Farming Scheme”
“basic payment scheme”
“farm payments”
“agricultural support”
“Agriculture (Wales) Act”
“tree cover”
“universal actions”
“farm support”

Abbreviations

“SFS”
“BPS”

Bovine TB and animal welfare

“bovine TB”
“bovine tuberculosis”
“badger”
“badgers”
“badger cull”
“bluetongue”
“animal welfare”
“animal health”
“Animal Welfare Plan”
“puppy farms”
“puppy farming”
“livestock worrying”

Farming and water quality

“agricultural pollution”
“Control of Agricultural Pollution”
“agricultural pollution regulations”
“water quality regulations”
“nitrate vulnerable zone”
“nitrate vulnerable zones”
“farming by calendar”
“slurry”
“nutrient management”
“poultry units”

Abbreviations

“NVZ”
“NVZs”

Fishing and the marine

“fishing industry”
“fisheries”
“fishers”
“fishermen”
“fishing fleet”
“aquaculture”
“shellfish”
“marine planning”
“Marine Planning Framework”
“seafood”
“marine protected areas”

Rural communities

“rural communities”
“rural economy”
“rural Wales”
“rural proofing”
“Rural Development Strategy”
“family farm”
“family farms”
“Royal Welsh Show”
“agricultural workers”
“inheritance tax”
“agricultural property relief”
“farm businesses”
“food production”
“food security”
“livestock”

The debate so far

The main arguments

The debate so far

The main arguments

Where the parties stand

Plaid CymruShifted

Welsh Labour

Welsh Conservatives

Reform UKShifted

Welsh Liberal Democrats

Wales Green Party

What the government is being pressed on

What the public is asking for

Who ministers are meeting

In the Sixth Senedd (2021 to 2026)

Where things stand

Total income from farming

What the government has promised

A stronger, more resilient rural Wales

Community-led planning and a "made in Wales" approach to regional development

From the Welsh Government

New arrangements reduce duplication for Sustainable Farming Scheme farmers

Key moments in the Senedd

Related votes

LCM on the Animal Welfare (Livestock Exports) Bill

Plaid Cymru Debate - Bovine TB

Who raises it

Which parties raise it

Members who raise it most

Who ministers have met

Written questions

Petitions

In committee

From Senedd Research

Bovine Tuberculosis

Latest contributions

Month by month

How this brief is put together

Phrases for the brief as a whole

Farm support and the Sustainable Farming Scheme

Bovine TB and animal welfare

Farming and water quality

Fishing and the marine

Rural communities