Agricultural law in Wales

The Welsh Government has asked the Law Commission to consider whether, and how, agricultural law in Wales could be modernised, simplified and made more accessible through a process of codification.

Pwyswch yma i ddarllen y fersiwn Cymraeg o’r tudalen

The Law Commission has completed its review of agricultural law applicable in Wales and published its scoping report.

Our scoping report examines existing agricultural law in Wales and identifies the legislation suitable for inclusion in a potential future code. Our work on this matter contributes to a longer-term programme led by the Welsh Government to improve the accessibility of Welsh law, including through the development of codes of Welsh law on devolved subjects.

A code of Welsh law is a comprehensive statement of the primary legislation, secondary legislation and, where relevant, government guidance on a particular subject, such as agriculture. In this context, codification aims to make the law on the relevant subject easier to find, navigate and understand.

Problem (Back to top)

Agricultural law in Wales is currently spread across a high volume of laws which are not necessarily easy to find or understand. This is partly because agricultural law in Wales originates from many different sources. The law in this area is made up of legislation made by the Welsh Parliament (the Senedd Cymru) and separately by the UK Parliament. Other agricultural laws originate from the EU and now form part of our domestic law as assimilated law. There are also secondary laws such as regulations and orders which can be made by the Welsh Ministers, Ministers of the UK Government, or in some cases, both.

Because agricultural law in Wales originates from all these different sources it is not always available in both English and Welsh. The legislation in this area also dates back as far as the nineteenth century and is, unsurprisingly, outdated in places.

Taken together, these issues mean that it can be challenging to identify the agricultural legislation that applies in Wales and, in some cases, difficult to understand the relevant law.

Project (Back to top)

At the request of the Welsh Government, the Law Commission commenced its detailed analysis of agricultural legislation in April 2024. Our primary task was to identify the legislation we consider suitable for inclusion in a potential future code of agricultural law for Wales.

Our scoping report examines over 150 different laws and identifies the legislation we think could be suitably brought within a potential future code of agricultural law for Wales. We spoke with a range of stakeholders and attended key agricultural and legal events in Wales to discuss our work and gather views from those affected.

We conclude that the accessibility of agricultural law in Wales could be improved through the creation of a bilingual, modernised code of agricultural law for Wales. We set out a proposed model for such a code that would involve bringing existing agricultural legislation together in a discrete number of enactments which clearly state that they form part of a code of agricultural law for Wales.

Our report also identifies technical issues with existing agricultural legislation that may benefit from changes or adjustments to the law which are aimed at modernising, simplifying and streamlining legislation. For example, we identify instances where the law does not reflect established practice and highlight those laws which may be suitable for repeal. We also highlight those issues which may require further consideration or analysis in the context of developing a potential future code of agricultural law for Wales. For example, we highlight various calls for substantive reform of agricultural legislation which may require further consideration before the law in this area could be codified.

Next steps (Back to top)

We published our scoping report on 11 February 2026. It is now for the Welsh Government to review and consider whether to establish a code of agricultural law for Wales and, if so, whether to do so in line with the model proposed in our report. As outlined in our protocol, the Welsh Ministers must provide an interim response within six months of publication and a full response within a year.