Cyfarfod y Panel Cynghori ar Amaethyddiaeth: 18 Chwefror 2025

Chair – Dr Nerys Llewelyn Jones
Independents – Janatha Stout, Trefor Owen
NFU Cymru – Simon Davies
FUW – Mark Williams
Unite – Jo Galazka, Barrie Roberts
Legal Adviser – Helen Snow (Geldards)
Welsh Government – David Thomas, Sian Hughes, Ryan Davies
Secretariat – Dan Ricketts

The chair welcomed everyone. No apologies were received, and no conflicts of interest were declared.

The Chair announced that her term will end on 31 March. 

A recruitment advertisement for the role will be published shortly, with the aim of appointing a new chair in time for the next in-person meeting in June or July.

She thanked all panel members for their support over the past four years.

On behalf of all panel members, JG thanked the chair for her work, noting that she had been very supportive and kept meetings flowing. She also remarked that having a woman in the role had been most welcome.

The panel discussed plans to mark the 10-year anniversary of its establishment in 2026. The focus was on how best to promote the panel’s work and the Agricultural Minimum Wage.

Members agreed that holding an event with the Deputy First Minister in attendance would be highly valuable. However, there may be scheduling challenges. The panel was officially established on 15 April 2016, which falls within the pre-election period ahead of the Senedd elections on 7 May 2026. Although the first meeting took place on 24 June 2016, by that time a new Welsh Government will be in place.

After considering several options, the Panel agreed to:

• hold a lunchtime event in late October or early November 2025, during the consultation period for the 2026 (10th) Order (w/c 20 October?)
• host a second event at the 2026 Royal Welsh Show

TO suggested that any event should highlight the benefits the panel has brought to the agricultural sector. This could include contributions from employers, workers, colleges, and others, showcasing how the order and the panel’s work have supported industry progress. The event should aim to engage not only politicians but also employers and employees.

BR added that it is important to place the panel’s work in the context of the wider food industry, helping the public understand how food reaches them.

It was noted that Farming Connect and the Farm Liaison Service have already undertaken promotional work on the Wages Order over the past 18 months.

The panel also reiterated their request for the Cabinet Secretary to attend a future meeting.

ACTION POINT 1: all panel members to identify key stakeholders to invite to the 10^th anniversary events.

ACTION POINT 2: Nerys Llewelyn Jones to contact Farming Connect to explore whether they can help organise the anniversary events, potentially aligning with their ongoing work on succession planning, starter farms, etc.

ACTION POINT 3: Dave Thomas to discuss the proposals with the Cabinet Secretary’s Private Office and to invite the Cabinet Secretary to attend a future meeting of the panel.

There were no alterations required and all members agreed the minutes were a true and accurate account of meeting AAP 50. All actions from the last meeting had also been completed.

DR reported that the Agricultural Wages Order 2025 had been finalised. Welsh Government legal services had conducted a thorough review of the order. In addition, two impact and risk assessments had been completed. The advice to the Cabinet Secretary had been expected to be submitted by 28 February. The order was scheduled to be laid before the Senedd on 11 March and to come into force on 1 April 2025.

The accompanying guidance for the 2025 order was under review and was expected to be published by 1 April.

An executive summary of the order had been prepared for distribution to all panel members for use through their respective communication channels. This summary was to remain embargoed until the order was formally laid before the Senedd on 11 March.

The panel had inquired about the communication strategy and whether the order would be publicised in the agricultural press.

An article had been planned for publication in Gwlad and inclusion in the summer update, which was scheduled for release shortly before the Royal Welsh Show. 

The Welsh Government communications team would also be contacted to promote the order via social media and other official channels.

ACTION POINT 4: Dan Ricketts to distribute the finalised impact assessment to panel members.

ACTION POINT 5: Dan Ricketts to send the executive summary of the 2025 order to all panel members.

Following the previous meeting (AAP 50), the Law Commission had asked the Panel to consider and respond to a series of questions to support its review of agricultural law in Wales.

HS had prepared a briefing note to assist the panel in formulating its responses. This note included contributions from members who had been invited to share their views.

Unite had also submitted a position paper addressing the broader scope of the review. This paper had not been included in the original briefing note.

The panel had expressed satisfaction with the briefing note and, after they had all had sight of Unite’s paper, had agreed that both documents should be submitted to the Law Commission.

ACTION POINT 6: Dan Ricketts to submit the briefing note and Unite’s paper to the Law Commission.

The chair had reviewed the draft internal review document, as discussed at the previous meeting. Panel members were invited to suggest any additional content for inclusion in the report.

The panel discussed the recommendations outlined in the document, focusing on how they could be implemented and measured. The chair proposed that these recommendations be incorporated into an action plan, which would be reviewed annually to track progress.

The action plan would include the following columns:

• recommendation
• actions/timeframe/responsible person
• progress/results
• impact

This action plan would then form part of the panel’s annual report.

The recommendations were reviewed, and the document would be updated accordingly.

ACTION POINT 7: Helen Snow to update the Internal Review document based on the panel’s discussions.

ACTION POINT 8: final agreed recommendations to be included in an action plan, to be reviewed annually.

The updated terms of reference, previously discussed at the last meeting, had been circulated to all panel members.

A concern was raised regarding the change of the term “wage negotiations” to “wage discussions.” DT clarified that this amendment was necessary due to a misalignment between the panel’s remit and operational practices. The panel’s role is to deliberate on minimum wage rates from various perspectives and recommend fair rates. While negotiations may occur in practice, Welsh Government legal advice prohibits the use of the term “negotiations".

The panel also discussed the remit of the secretariat, the role of the legal adviser, and the panel’s budget capacity.

ACTION POINT 9: Nerys Llewelyn Jones to revise the terms of reference as discussed and circulate the updated version to all panel members.

SFS Update

DT checked that all panel members had seen the update on the Sustainable Farming Scheme (SFS), published in November 2024. Key changes highlighted included:

• a reduction in the number of Universal Actions from 17 to 12
• removal of the 10% tree planting requirement

The chair reiterated the importance of having clarity on payment rates ahead of the wage discussions scheduled for September. Although the rates were expected to be published over the summer, this had not yet been confirmed. She requested that the panel be provided with as much information as possible for the discussions meeting – even if the details are under embargo.

Finance paper

A paper from Welsh Government was circulated to all panel members ahead of the meeting, outlining the financial context underpinning the panel’s operations. It highlighted ongoing budget constraints and aimed to support the panel in factoring these limitations into future planning.

Welsh Government officials had made representations to senior leadership and finance teams requesting a ringfenced budget for the panel, as well as an increase to better reflect actual operational costs. However, due to wider financial pressures, these requests were not approved.

Going forward, Welsh Government will provide regular updates to the panel throughout the financial year on budget spend and availability.

ACTION POINT 10: Welsh Government officials to provide a budget update at each panel meeting.

Agricultural Wages Order: annual timetable

A paper outlining the timetable and process for bringing the Agricultural Wages Order into legislation was circulated to all panel members prior to the meeting.

TO noted that the paper was clearly presented, and the panel agreed it was a useful resource. HS suggested it be included as an appendix to the Internal Effectiveness Review.

SH highlighted that, in principle, the panel should request input from the Skills Development and Training Sub-Committee on skills and careers relevant to the next order. This was not included within the timetable but would need to happen before the June/July meeting. It was agreed that this should be included within the timetable.

The panel approved the paper.

ACTION POINT 11: Dan Ricketts to amend timetable to factor in the request to the Skills Development and Training Sub-Committee outlining any information which is relevant to the next order.

ACTION POINT 12: Helen Snow to attach the annual timetable as an appendix to the panel’s effectiveness review. 

Next meetings/steps

• Tuesday 8 July: legal review of minimum terms and conditions (Llandrindod Wells Welsh Government office)
• Friday 22 August: deadline for initial submissions/proposals
• Monday 8 and Tuesday 9 September: minimum wage and allowance rate discussions (Welsh Government Pavilion – Royal Welsh Showground)
• Tuesday 25 November: review consultation responses (Microsoft Teams) (date subject to change depending on consultation dates)

DT concluded by giving thanks from the Welsh Government to the chair saying the processes and operations are in a much better state than when she joined and that she has been a great chair.