Wales’ only Reform UK Senedd Member is calling on the Welsh Government to scrap its target of covering more farmland with trees, saying it endangers the livelihood of farmers.

Laura Anne Jones MS, the member for South Wales East, said that recent posts circulating on social media show the growing concern among farmers that land is being diverted to afforestation for carbon credits rather than supporting responsible food production.

“It is as if our farmland is being treated like a playing field for green investment instead of a working business. Our farmers do more than plant trees,” she said.

“They feed families and keep rural Wales alive. The Welsh Government must stop this obsession with trees on productive land and start valuing the people who make Wales work.”

The Welsh Government had introduced a mandatory target for 10 per cent of farm land to be covered by trees in 2024, but that was dropped almost exactly a year ago. Now, farmers must sign up to a tree planting and hedgerow creation plan, with a view to delivering an entry-level requirement of tree cover by 2030.

Grants will also be available to those who wish to add an optional layer of tree cover, designed to incentivise planting more trees and/or hedgerows on agricultural land.

But Ms Jones has called for a halt to what she describes as “compulsory afforestation” of farmland until local businesses are consulted and protected. According to her, the rules around what farmers have to do is unclear and environmental targets are being prioritised over rural livelihoods.

“Farmers are not the enemy of the environment, they are its stewards,” she continued.

“The Government should be working with them, not sidelining them in favour of targets that no one in the valleys is asking for.”

“It is time to put people back into policy, not just trees.”