Police tell farmers not to bring tractors to Cardiff protest
Protesting farmers have been told not to bring their tractors to Cardiff.
South Wales Police said it was aware of a protest planned to take place in Cardiff Bay on Wednesday.
A spokesperson for the force said it was scheduled to begin at 12.30pm and expected to attract large numbers.
Officers say they are “monitoring this situation closely” as road users are told they could experience delays.
The protest may include slow-moving traffic in the Cardiff Bay area and in the wider South Wales area, police say.
But the force says it will be “proactive in minimising disruption to the public”.
There are currently no planned road closures, but access to some roads around the Senedd will be controlled.
The Senedd. Pic: PA
Farmers have expressed their unhappiness at new plans from the Welsh government which would see changes to how farms receive government funding.
A new scheme is being introduced in Wales after the UK voted to leave the European Union.
The Welsh government’s proposals would see farms getting public money if they meet a series of environmental targets.
This includes making sure that 10% of farmers’ land is covered with trees.
Farming unions have warned about the impact the requirement could have on the future of the industry.
The Welsh government has emphasised the proposals are subject to an ongoing consultation.
It has been meeting with representatives of the farming industry in Wales in recent weeks.
On Tuesday, the government announced a number of steps it was taking to address some of the concerns Welsh farmers have.
In a joint written statement, First Minister Mark Drakeford and rural affairs minister Lesley Griffiths said the government was today appointing a bovine TB technical advisory group, as had been previously announced.
That group will look at alternatives to the on-farm slaughter of cattle who have tested positive for bovine tuberculosis and will advise those ministers “as a matter of urgency”.
On water regulations, the government said it would make £20m of extra funding available to help farmers comply with the rules.
It said it would also appoint an independent chair to oversee the first effectiveness review of those regulations.
Mr Drakeford and Ms Griffiths also said the government will ensure woodland and habitat requirements “do not make farms unviable” when forming the final proposals for the sustainable farming scheme.
“Regular review points” will be set up between the Welsh government and farming representatives, before final proposals are drawn up.
Superintendent Esyr Jones said the force “respects the right to peaceful protest”.
“We are in discussions with the organisers to ensure that the protest takes place safely, lawfully with minimum disruption to the wider public,” he added.
“While there is an agreement to facilitate protest activity outside the Senedd, I would urge protesters not to bring tractors or other agricultural vehicles to the protest.
“There are concerns that they pose a risk to the safety of other road users and restrict the movement of emergency services in a busy city environment.”
The public have been advised by police to plan their journey accordingly amid expected delays.
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The defence secretary has said he is “angry inside” over the infected blood scandal ahead of a long-waited report into the decades-long injustice.
Grant Shapps told Sky News he agreed it had been one of the most “shameful failures” of government and said he was dismayed by the “lack of anybody taking responsibility”.
The findings of a public inquiry into the scandal, chaired by Sir Brian Langstaff, are due to be published on Monday.
From 1970 to the 1990s, tens of thousands of people were infected with contaminated blood through blood products or blood transfusions given via the NHS. People were infected with hepatitis or HIV – in some cases with both.
An estimated 3,000 people died as a result.
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Mr Shapps told Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips that the scandal was a “massive injustice which needs to be put right” and said the government would act on the report.
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Thousands of people died after being given infected blood
He said that while he was yet to see the report, he hoped it would finally allow families’ pain and loss to be acknowledged and for the government to properly respond.
Mr Shapps said he had spoken to relatives of several victims, including a couple who had lost their son, and said their stories made feel him “angry inside”.
He added: “It just made me angry to know they had lost their son without anyone ever taking responsibility, so I think this is why this report tomorrow is very important.”
Successive governments have been blamed for failing to take responsibility and the current government has been accused of trying to delay compensation to victims after an inquiry was first set up by Theresa May in 2017.
It is estimated that the compensation bill could now exceed £10m.
The defence secretary admitted the process of delivering payouts to victims had gone on for “so long”.
He added: “This is a massive injustice which needs to be put right.
“And I know the government said we will. The report tomorrow, I think, will be the day for that family and others and I know the government will want to respond quickly.”
Asked whether Prime Minister Rishi Sunak would apologise to the victims, Mr Shapps said: “I don’t want to mislead because I don’t have special insight into that.”
Read more:
Boy, 7, was used in secret blood trials, parents say
Doctor’s horror over scandal
Blood donations ‘collected from UK prisons’
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Shadow health secretary Wes Streeting also told Trevor Phillips that he expected “successive governments” to be criticised in the report by Sir Brian.
“Everyone has got their responsibility to bear in this appalling scandal and we have got a shared responsibility to put it right,” he said.
“The moment to act can’t come soon enough.”
Sir Brian is due to deliver his final report just after midday on Monday.
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