Andrew RT Davies: Welsh Labour not sticking to green agenda promises

We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you’ve consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our understanding. You can unsubscribe at any time. More info

Welsh Conservative leader Andrew RT Davies spoke with Express.co.uk about the Vale of Glamorgan’s council decision to allow finance company Legal & General to demolish a fourth-generation farm, which has operated in the area since 1935, to build a business park. He explained the decision was widely opposed by the Conservatives and Plaid Cymru with all Labour and independent councillors voting to allow planning permission for the business park construction. Mr Davies said the decision was at odds with Labour’s climate change position after leader Sir Keir Starmer has called for the Scottish Cambo oilfield to be scrapped.

Legal & General are the leaseholders of the farmland in the Vale of Glamorgan and are seeking to build a 45-hectare concrete business park to support the nearby Cardiff Airport. 

An outline planning permission was narrowly granted by the council by 9-8 vote on July 14 which will allow Legal & General to start outlining what they want to do with their land. 

It also means the Jenkins family who lives and works on the land have been told they cannot live there anymore and are desperately trying to overturn the decision.

Speaking to Express.co.uk about the issue, Mr Davies said Welsh Labour could get involved and overturn the decision. 

DON’T MISS: Devon farm gives visitors chance to cuddle mini pigs with prosecco

He explained: “The system is the system and it could be overturned readily if the Welsh Labour Government stuck to what they committed to do which is a green engine and a green revolution.

“But clearly there’s a discrepancy in what they talk about the despatch box in the Welsh parliament and was enacted on the ground locally.

“And here you have a classic example of four generations of the family farm being turfed off the land by a large developer Legal and General to create a business park.

“And two and a half miles down the road, there’s plenty of brownfield land that could host all those quality jobs that we want to see, those new business startups that we want to create.

Farmer shares concerns about being ‘kicked out of his home’

“As I said this isn’t an ‘either or’ situation, this is about Welsh Labour standing up and doing what they tell the people in Wales they’re going to do it clearly in this particular case, they’re not doing it.”

Mr Davies has repeatedly stressed that there is viable land nearby including a 1,200-acre brownfield site which could easily be developed on to protect the local wildlife.

He adds there are also nearby business parks which are not at full capacity and questioned whether this new development is necessary. 

Reece Jenkins who lives on the land spoke to GB News and said: “[The farm] is everything and all we’ve ever done and known really.

“No, it’s something we take lightly when it’s being taken away from us but it feels like there isn’t much you can do when you’ve got these big companies and a council that doesn’t seem to look like they know what they’re doing.”

READ MORE:

Jeremy Clarkson gives farm update as he welcomes new additions [REPORT]
Matt Baker speaks out on returning to Our Farm in the Dales [VIDEO]
Have a Cumbria cottage sleepover with llamas [REVEAL]

Gethin Jenkins told the planning committee at the time: “I’m the third generation of my family to farm at Model Farm. My son would be the fourth if this generation is rejected. We rear beef cattle, grow cereals, and have recently started growing wildflower seeds for sale throughout Wales.

The increase in bees, pollinators, and other insects in these fields is truly amazing.

“In the aftermath of Brexit, it should be of paramount importance to secure a sustainable supply of home-grown food and thus reduce the carbon footprint and food miles of our goods.”

Mr Davies also told Express.co.uk he may have backed the development as he supports creating jobs and industry but could not in this instance when other sites are available for the business park. 

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has called for the Cambo oil fields being built in Scotland to be scrapped as he thinks it sends the wrong message in the lead-up to Cop 26. 

Labour has also attacked the Government for not pulling its weight when it comes to climate change as analysis from the World Wildlife Fund found only 0.001 percent of GDP is being spent on the environment.

The Vale of Glamorgan council told Express.co.uk: “This planning application was approved by the Council’s planning committee last month following full consideration of all relevant factors, including those relating to its environmental impact.

A report explaining exactly how the decision was reached can be found on the Council’s website.

This addresses in detail concerns relating to the climate emergency, local objections and support. It also notes that recently adopted Welsh Government policy supports the principle of this development given its strategic location, with connections to Wales’ only airport.

“Cardiff Airport is an essential part of Wales’ transport infrastructure. As an international gateway, it connects Wales to the rest of the world and helps drive the Country’s economy. The wider Cardiff Airport and Bro St Athan Enterprise Zone also offers opportunities for investment, both within its parameters and surrounding areas of the Vale.

“This site has long been identified as a location for large-scale employment. It was first designated for this purpose in the Council’s 2011 Local Development Plan (LDP), a document that was subsequently adopted by the then Conservative-led Council in 2017. That followed an examination in public led by a Welsh Government-appointed Planning Inspector. The LDP has been monitored on an annual basis since its adoption, with a report submitted to Welsh Government every October. It is a legal requirement that all planning decisions are taken in accordance with the LDP unless material considerations indicate otherwise.”

Welsh Labour refused to comment.

Source: Read Full Article