Brecon and Radnorshire MS James Evans has welcomed changes to the Sustainable Farming Scheme (SFS) - but says serious concerns remain over the impact on Welsh farms.

Mr Evans, who previously Shadow Minister for Rural Affairs, has been a vocal critic of early proposals and launched a Welsh Conservative alternative plan last year, calling for more flexibility, a 70 per cent baseline payment, and the scrapping of rigid planting targets.

Speaking after the final scheme was published, he said: “The Welsh Government have listened to the concerns of the industry, taken note of the proposals by the Welsh Conservatives and others, and introduced flexibility into the now final SFS scheme.

“There are some positives with the 10 per cent tree planting target being dropped, fewer Universal Actions to undertake and most importantly, a basic SFS payment equivalent of 70 per cent BPS. But there continues to be areas of concern and some details remain unknown.” 

Among them is the sharp drop in support for farmers not joining the scheme.

“The 40 per cent reduction in BPS payments in 2026 for non-SFS entrants will be a significant hit,” he said.

“This is a ‘stick’ approach to force businesses to move over to SFS.”

Mr Evans warned that once a farmer joins the SFS, there is no going back to the BPS.

“We have been told that impact assessments, environmental and economic, have been undertaken but these have not been published,” he said.

“I fear that this SFS, together with the UK Government’s ‘Family Farm Tax’, could lead to reduction in livestock numbers, reduction in family farms and thousands of job losses right across Wales.”

Mr Evans urged future governments to maintain or boost funding and ensure farmers get proper support for the climate and biodiversity targets they are expected to deliver.