12/05/26 Farming in Wales after Senedd elections; mapping soils in Northern Ireland; new national plant health centre

Farmers in Wales and Scotland are asking what last week's elections in Scotland and Wales will mean for agriculture. Neither Plaid Cymru in Wales nor the SNP in Scotland have ended up with an outright majority. In Scotland, Mairi Gougeon, the Rural Affairs Secretary, didn't stand for re-election, so a new appointment will have to be made. In Wales, Plaid Cymru have won 43 out of the 96 seats in an expanded Welsh parliament so are short of an outright majority. It means the Welsh pro-independence party will need the support of others to pass laws and a budget in future. So what does it all mean for agriculture and the environment - both policy areas that are largely devolved?

The agriculture show season begins with Balmoral Show just outside Belfast this week. Farming Today will be reporting from the show, and all week, we'll be looking at different aspects of farming across Northern Ireland. Unique to the United Kingdom, Northern Ireland's Soil Nutrient Health Scheme is the largest baseline soil sampling programme ever undertaken. The £37 million government-funded scheme is managed by the Agri-Food and Bio-Science Institute (AFBI) and has taken four years to complete.

A new centre to identify and address plant diseases is being set up with government funding of £3 million. The National Centre for Environmental Horticulture Plant Health will be virtual, operated by staff at the government's Animal and Plant Health Agency and the charity, the Royal Horticultural Society. It's hoped that commercial plant growers and gardeners too will send in evidence of pests and diseases to help stop their spread.

Presenter: Anna Hill
Producer: Rebecca Rooney