Farmers cannot be allowed to “decide what to do” with government funding, Wales’s first minister has said.
Mark Drakeford told a news conference that the Welsh public was “entitled to a return on [its] investment”.
Protests have taken place across Wales in recent weeks over a controversial new funding scheme, which is the subject of an ongoing consultation.
Broadcaster Jeremy Clarkson, who owns a farm in the Cotswolds, waded into the row over the weekend, calling the policy “completely daft”.
The sustainable farming scheme (SFS) will replace the basic payment scheme and will require farmers to meet certain environmental obligations.
One of those is a requirement for farmers to plant trees on 10% of their land.
While this applies only to land where conditions allow, farming unions are worried about its impact on the industry’s future.
