THE war of words between farmers and the Welsh government over climate change measures intensified as the First Minister hit back today at a threatened boycott.

Mark Drakeford was defending plans to tie farm subsidies to tree planting after senior figures in NFU Cymru threatened to boycott the scheme.

His government is setting up a new subsidy scheme for Welsh farms to take effect in 2025, replacing EU subsidies worth over £300 million a year.

The Sustainable Farming Scheme (SFS) will reward farmers for actions that help soak up carbon emissions, provide habitats for wildlife and enhance water quality.

To qualify, farms have to sign up to a checklist of universal actions, including ensuring 10 per cent of their land is planted with trees and a further 10 per cent managed as wildlife habitat.

But NFU Cymru’s leaders announced a boycott saying the proposals “did not make business sense.”

“I think it will be a puzzle to many people, the idea that farmers can’t grow trees,” the FM told the BBC.

Mr Drakeford said that people in Wales were “willing to go on investing in the future of farming,” adding: “But they also expect that farmers will produce those public goods that the public is willing to pay for.”

NFU Cymru deputy president Abi Reader said: “While farmers remain in the dark about the level of incentive Welsh government proposes for the scheme, we fear that payment rates are not likely to reflect the reduction in land values associated with tree planting.

“Would Welsh government expect any other sector to undertake an activity that could devalue an asset, in our case productive agricultural land, by up to 80 per cent of its value.”

But NFU Cymru offered an olive branch after Ms Reader suggested further talks with Rural Affairs Minister Lesley Griffiths to amend the scheme.

A Welsh government spokesperson said: “We have a challenging target of creating 43,000 hectares of new woodland by 2030 to help mitigate climate change.

“By asking all farmers to manage existing woodland and possibly create more through the scheme we will spread the load across Wales.

“This should help avoid large-scale land use change and keep farmers on the land.”