Neil Hamilton urges farmers to further promote themselves as 'custodians of the environment'

Politician turned media-celebrity Neil Hamilton has said farmers 'must further promote themselves' as 'custodians of the environment' in order to put themselves at the forefront of decision-makers’ minds post-Brexit.

Mr Hamilton, the leader of UKIP in the National Assembly, said that while Brexit presented challenges in the respect of ‘moving into a world we do not know’, he stated it was a ‘great opportunity’ for farming union NFU Cymru to drive the debate and help forge a positive future for Welsh agriculture.

Speaking during a NFU Cymru county conference meeting, Mr Hamilton, who is also UKIP’s Agriculture spokesman in the National Assembly, said that it was of ‘extreme importance’ to get the best possible post-Brexit deal for Welsh farmers. He suggested that farmers needed to highlight the role they play for the environment that boosts the tourism sector in Wales and the Welsh economy.

Mr Hamilton underlined his concern about the increased levels of bovine TB in Clwyd, with an alarming 129% increase in the number of cattle being slaughtered in the county as a result of the disease in the last 12 months. He called upon the Welsh Government to ‘summon up the courage’ to provide an eradication programme that is fit for purpose.

Speaking about the Welsh Government’s current NVZ proposals, Mr Hamilton added that the approach needed to be ‘based on science’ with the full impact and cost burden on the industry carefully considered.

NFU Cymru Deputy President John Davies thanked Mr Hamilton for attending the meeting and challenged him to put pressure on the decision makers in Cardiff Bay to help ensure Welsh farmers can enjoy free and unfettered access to the single market going forwards.