It’s Halloween, and the Press teams on either side of Offa’s Dyke are still working away…

Don’t Let Down Welsh Farmers – Welsh Lib Dems

Following the closure of the Welsh Government’s Brexit and Our Land consultation, the Welsh Liberal Democrats have urged the Welsh Government to carefully listen to the views of farmers and ensure farmers are not let down as they begin to consider their response.

The Welsh Government’s proposed model for supporting farmers and land managers after Brexit involves removing any aspect of direct support and instead focusing on promoting economic resilience and public goods.

The Welsh Liberal Democrat response to the consultation called on the Welsh Government to listen to Farming Unions and introduce a system that retains a strong aspect of direct support.

Welsh Liberal Democrat Rural Affairs Spokesperson Mark Williams said:

Farmers are the backbone of rural communities and it’s essential the Welsh Government creates a farm funding scheme that secures the future of Welsh farmers and all the supply chains they support.

The Welsh Liberal Democrats have a proud history of understanding and standing up for rural communities and today is no different. We will continue to fight for the farming support system our rural communities need.

Welsh Liberal Democrat Agriculture Spokesperson Cllr William Powell said:

Welsh farmers face immense uncertainty surrounding their futures after Brexit, as they still don’t know what access to European markets they will have or whether their funding will be protected long-term. It is essential the Welsh Government do all they can to provide much needed reassurance and the climate of certainty so vital for business planning.

We urge the Welsh Government to listen to the FUW, NFU Cymru and TFA and change course. The Welsh Government must maintain a strong element of direct support in their future farm funding schemes to protect the future of Welsh farms. Our food security and our precious natural environment depend upon it.

People’s Vote could not be disregarded without a constitutional crisis

Responding to comments by Sir David Natzler, clerk of the House of Commons, that a vote on a ‘People’s Vote’ would still have “considerable political force”, Liberal Democrat Brexit spokesperson Tom Brake said:

Whether a parliamentary vote on a ‘People’s Vote’ amendment was legally binding or not, the PM could not disregard the result without a serious constitutional and democratic crisis.

The Tories are trying to claim the calamitous Chequers Deal or catastrophic No Deal are the only two options available. This is not true.

A People’s Vote is the third most sensible and consensual option, and if Parliament votes for one, the people should be granted one! Only the Liberal Democrats are united in fighting Brexit.

Moran demands transparency on Leave donations channelled through NI

Liberal Democrat MP Layla Moran used Northern Ireland Questions today to urge the Government to change the law to ensure full transparency and scrutiny of Leave campaign donations given to political parties in Northern Ireland.

Current laws only require donations from July 2017 to be published, meaning details of who donated £425,000 to the Democratic Unionist Party that was spent on pro-Brexit advertising in the Metro does not have to be disclosed.

Speaking in the chamber today, Ms Moran asked the Government why they were “ignoring the recommendations of the Electoral Commission” to backdate transparency of donations to 2014.

Following the exchanges, Layla Moran MP said:

It really beggars belief that the Government is allowing political parties in Northern Ireland to mark their own homework and decide whether or not details of their donations should be made public.

The law already allows for details of donations to be backdated to 2014 and the independent Electoral Commission has urged the Government to do just that. It makes you wonder if the Conservatives and their DUP partners have something to hide.

With the Leave campaign under investigation by the Metropolitan Police, people in all parts of the United Kingdom have a right to know who donated money to the Leave campaign.