The Farmers' Union of Wales has demanded an apology from Welsh First Minister Carwyn Jones following attempts by Welsh ministers to block a repeat episode of a Welsh language TV soap in which the government is criticised for having no backbone regarding a badger cull.

FUW president Emyr Jones said today: "I have written to the First Minister  stating that the Welsh Government should apologise to S4C for what has happened and asking for assurances that such attempts to gag the media will not happen again."

The Welsh Government complained to S4C and BBC, who make the popular rogramme Pobl y Cwm, after a character on the show said the Welsh Government "doesn't have the backbone" to cull badgers.

A controversial badger cull in West Wales was cancelled in March when ministers decided to vaccinate the animals instead.

The Welsh Government also wants the episode taken off the internet.

It is claiming the programme breaches editorial guidelines and that the government has been denied a right of reply.

They also wanted the episode removed from the S4C online service Clic.

S4C declined the request not to air the repeat which was shown as planned last night (Thursday).

Emyr Jones said; "The programme made comments which were very derogatory for farmers but we have not received a single complaint because our members understand they were made by a character in a soap opera and should be taken in context because these are not real people.

"For the Welsh Government to formally ask for censorship of a soap opera because it contains characters criticising them is not just an overreaction, but a major concern for anyone who believes in having a media free from political censorship by the ruling government or anyone else.

"The fact that this coincides with the release of the Leveson Report on the culture, practices and ethics of the press has made many wonder whether this is some kind of political ploy to undermine Leveson's recommendations, rather than an outrageous attempt to prevent comments made by a character in a soap opera being broadcast.

"Either way, deliberations regarding Lord Leveson's findings should not be influenced in any way by this ridiculous decision by the Welsh Government, and S4C should be commended for standing their ground."

[caption id="attachment_3803" align="aligncenter" width="472"] BURSARY FINALISTS: Winner Bleddyn James Pugh - centre - receives a £1,000 cheque from Alun Edwards while runner-up Aled Pugh Jones is presented with his £500 cheque by FUW deputy president Glyn Roberts. Also pictured is fellow judge Dafydd Williams.[/caption]

Two Aberystwyth University first-year agriculture students who also attended Coleg Llysfasi at Ruthin went head-to-head in the final interviews for the top awards in the Farmers' Union of Wales higher education bursary scheme.

Eighteen-year-olds Bleddyn James Pugh, of Doliago, Llanwrthwl, Llandrindod Wells, and Aled Pugh Jones, of Roff Ithel, Waen, St Asaph, Denbighshire, were shortlisted for interview by a panel of judges during this week's Royal Welsh Winter Fair.

Both submitted 1,000-word essays with their entry forms. Bleddyn chose the topic "What do you think are the main barriers facing young people entering the land-based industries today?" while Aled opted for "Are we a nation of park keepers or food producers?"

Bleddyn was chosen as the winner of the £1,000 bursary by a three-man judges' panel and Aled was awarded £500 as the runner-up.

Bleddyn lives on a mixed hill and upland family farm and has been interested in farming from an early age. "In recent years I have begun to take a more active role in the running of our farm and also work for two contracting companies.

"I spend the first part of the summer working for a local shearing contractor and the second working for a large agricultural contractor in Herefordshire," he said.

"I've also been a loyal member of Rhayader YFC since I was 12, during which time I have competed in various competitions such as fencing and farm safety at county and national level.

"Winning the bursary will enable me to make best use of the nine-month work placement I wish to complete as part of my degree.

"Over recent years our family farm has begun to adopt aspects of the New Zealand-based sheep system to try and make our sheep enterprise more efficient, produce as much from our own grass as possible and reduce our reliance on brought in concentrates.

"As part of my work experience I plan to travel to New Zealand to work as a shearing contractor. However, I would also like to spend time travelling around farms so that I can study their systems and hopefully find additional aspects that I can implement on our own farm.

"I would particularly like to do this in New Zealand because when they stopped receiving government subsidy they had to alter their farming systems very quickly to make it as efficient as possible which involved making the most from farm-grown feed, especially grass, in order to make their farms profitable."

The youngest of four children and brought up on a farm, Aled has shown an interest in farming from an early age and spent a lot of time on his grandmother and uncle's farm. "I was encouraged to help on the farm, especially during lambing and harvest," he said.

"I have also been fortunate to help on the farm of my cousin who shows cattle and sheep and I was very pleased to win a prize at the Royal Welsh Show for showing sheep.

"Recently I acquired a Kelpie dog called George and I'm going to train it to work on the farm. The costs of being a student are very high, including the various books and transport to and from home. I will be travelling home fairly often on weekends to help on the farm - and to train my dog George.

"Winning the bursary will help me financially as I would like to spend a year out in New Zealand and the cost of going and living there will be very expensive.

"More importantly, I'm very aware that getting a degree on its own isn't enough anymore and in order to get a job in the future it is important to obtain extra qualifications so winning a bursary is very helpful when I will be trying for jobs."

Praising the entries of the two finalists, FUW agricultural education and training committee chairman Alun Edwards said the judges were looking forward to following their respective future careers.

"We still have a problem in our schools with how agriculture is perceived so it's a big responsibility of ours to further agriculture as a career. There is potentially a good career in farming and both finalists are also interested in their local community and giving something back.

"We were very, very impressed with the maturity of the essays they submitted and we are inviting them to take part in a meeting of the FUW's new younger voice for farming committee."

During the Winter Fair the union launched its bursary scheme for further education students which will also have a £1,000 award for the winner and £500 for the runner-up.

Application forms can be obtained from FUW Head Office at Llys Amaeth, Plas Gogerddan, Aberystwyth SY23 3BT (Tel: 01970 820820) or from any of the union's county offices.

The Farmers' Union of Wales says it has been inundated by calls from farmers incensed by revelations that pop star Brian May was allowing deer to be culled on his country estate while simultaneously lobbying against a badger cull in Wales.

According to news reports, May allowed 23 "mainly young, healthy animals" to be culled on his 139-acre estate in Dorset as part of a woodland management regime while simultaneously campaigning aggressively against a proposed cull in and around north Pembrokeshire.

At one point Mr May even suggested Welsh farmers should give up keeping cattle or move out of areas in which they have farmed for generations.

FUW TB spokesman and vice president Brian Walters said: "The fact that Brian May accepts the need to cull deer to protect trees but does not support culling badgers to protect cattle has caused extreme anger amongst Welsh farmers.

"Union staff and officials have received large numbers of calls over the weekend from farmers who find the level of this hypocrisy astounding, and it is being spoken about everywhere at today's Royal Welsh Winter Fair.

"Mr May was a kingpin in the campaign to stop a badger cull in West Wales and all the scientific evidence suggests that the success of his campaign means more Welsh cattle will now die than would otherwise have been the case.

"The fact that he was simultaneously sanctioning a cull of deer on his own land in order to protect trees is mindboggling."

Mr Walters said farms in Welsh TB hotspots were overrun with badgers which, scientific evidence suggests, are responsible for around 50% of cattle herd outbreaks in hotspot areas.

"The revelation regarding Mr May's deer cull should come as a wake-up call for all those who have been swayed by his propaganda.

"It shows how illogical the reasoning of those who place badgers on a pedestal can be.

"Badgers should be treated like any other mammal which has reached population densities so high that they trigger disease epidemics and massive environmental damage."

Mr Walters was also harshly critical of the implication by May and the RSPCA that shooting deer is humane while shooting badgers is not.

"This shows complete ignorance and hypocrisy regarding animal welfare and the scientific evidence relating to shooting.

"The acceptance that deer culling is necessary is leading to important environmental and animal health benefits throughout the UK. Yet the positive discrimination shown by the RSPCA and others towards badgers, simply because of their iconic status, is leading to the deaths of tens of thousands of cattle every year."

The Farmers' Union of Wales has welcomed the news that 91 per cent of Welsh Single Payments will be released on December 3 - the first day of the payment window.

The announcement that over £213 million would be released to more than 15,000 farm businesses was made by deputy agriculture minister Alun Davies during a Hybu Cig Cymru breakfast event at the Royal Welsh Winter Fair in Llanelwedd.

Speaking after the event, FUW president Emyr Jones said: "I would like to thank all those Welsh Government staff who have worked hard to ensure that such a large proportion of claims have been processed and can be released on the first day of the payment period.

"The Single Payment represents an essential injection of funds into our rural communities which sustain farms and a host of other businesses which rely directly or indirectly on agriculture."

Mr Jones also welcomed the deputy minister's commitment to maintaining the CAP budget at a level which reflected its importance to the economy of Wales.

"We have heard a great deal from successive UK governments about cutting CAP spending and moving money away from food production but we have yet to see a 'plan B' which holds water and recognises the challenges we face in terms of feeding a growing global population.

"In the absence of acceptable Pillar 1 CAP payments we would see the collapse of our rural economies and communities, and UK and EU food security would be severely compromised at a time when global food shortages are occurring more and more frequently.

"The deputy minister is right to recognise these concerns, and is very much on the same page as the FUW in doing so."