Report calls for major changes to reduce bureaucracy in agriculture

The independent report, which focuses on seven key areas and makes 74 recommendations, will build on the work already done on reducing red tape within the
agriculture industry in Wales.

The work of the Red Tape Review Group in Wales during the last Welsh Government made significant progress, including rationalising inspections on farms, developing a risk based approach and improving communications to engage ‘hard to reach’ farmers. The Working Smarter initiative takes that work forward.

The Working Smarter report and the Welsh Government’s response, which can be viewed on the Welsh Government website's Working Smarter page, makes recommendations for change within Government, but also presents challenges for industry stakeholders and individual farmers. The expectation from Gareth Williams is that Government and the farming industry in Wales will join together in partnership to deliver the positive outcomes the report seeks to deliver.

When debating the Working Smarter report in the National Assembly Plenary session on 7 February, the Deputy Agriculture Minister Alun Davies underlined his determination to reduce bureaucracy for farmers in Wales to allow them to focus on farming and on developing their businesses. In addition to the plenary debate, the Deputy Minister held a meeting with stakeholders and partners.

The meeting, Chaired jointly by the Deputy Minister and Gareth Williams, was an opportunity to debate the recommendations and question the way forward.

The Deputy Minister thanked everyone for contributing to the report. He said,

“I am fully committed to taking this process forward and working with stakeholders and individual farmers to deliver a new relationship between government and the farming industry in Wales. I am very pleased that Gareth Williams has agreed to come back in a year’s time to review the way that the Welsh Government and the industry have worked together to implement his recommendations.”

The challenge now for Welsh Government is to progress this work as quickly as possible in line with the timeframes.