Voice your views on consultations
IN the run up to Christmas, various tractor runs had been organised with the intention of raising much-needed funds for various charities. The escalating infection rate scuppered those events.
Voluntary organisations did some sterling work to bring festive cheer by arranging for a socially distanced and Covid-19 compliant Santa to make an appearance in various communities in his sleigh. Credit to them for giving their time to bring some joy.
Welsh Government also sought to get in on the pre-christmas delivery act. On the last day of the Senedd term, they published their proposals for a future agricultural support scheme in their Agriculture (Wales) White Paper. Whilst not as amusing as ‘Rudolph’s Christmas Joke Book’ or as vivid as Dickens’ ‘Christmas Carol’, it is nonetheless an important read for our sector.
Welsh Government will consult on the document for a period of 12 weeks, in readiness for further work after the next Welsh Government election. The timing of this consultation is equally disappointing and frustrating.
The Christmas recess will curtail the opportunity for opposition politicians to scrutinise the document and ask questions. As new year arrives, many of us will enter a busy period with lambing and calving starting.
Whether we like it or not, this is the beast we have to deal with. The document itself gives fair warning that there will be further consultation on related issues. We might find reading such documents and grappling with the content tedious. I certainly think so. The truth is, though, that other organisations who claim to be ‘interested’ in the way the countryside is kept and managed have an army of ready and willing volunteers, along with paid professionals, to write consultation responses.
The farming unions will respond in their own right. That said, the best way for the industry to ensure its views are clearly heard is to ensure a volume of responses from the coal face, from the very people lacing up their boots and delivering the goods. NFU Cymru will most certainly be there to help farmers to respond and to provide clarity on the document where required.
In a nutshell, if we avoid, or choose not to voice our views by responding to consultations, our futures will be influenced by other ‘interested’ organisations. Their ideas will steer future policy. A lack of response will be seen as acceptance on our part. Complaining down at the pub or at the mart will be futile when the horse has bolted. We need to help our union to help us in this matter. It’s not just a matter of paying subs and thinking it’s job done.
Blwyddyn newydd dda i chi i gyd! Happy new year everyone!