The First Minister is facing calls to answer a range of questions and demands when he addresses the NFUS AGM in Glasgow this week.

Following demands for Humza Yousaf to use his attendance at the event in Glasgow to announce the return of money to the rural portfolio, pressure continues to build as the Scottish Tories issue a list of 10 questions for the First Minister to answer.

Mr Yousaf will give a speech to delegates before joining rural affairs secretary Mairi Gougeon for a question and answer session.

READ MORE | First Minister Humza Yousaf to address NFU Scotland AGM

The Tories have called for a gene-editing bill to be brought forward to bolster Scottish food security in the future, while other issues include calls to row back on the reintroduction of beavers as well as the fast tracking of new National Parks which they say will harm core food and farming production without consulting local farmers and crofters.

They also want the Scottish Government to introduce a regional catchment management approach to reduce flood damage faced by farmers, which would include additional resources to rural councils for defences against extreme

Rural affairs spokesperson for the Scottish Conservatives Rachael Hamilton said: “It’s clearer than ever that the extremist Green tail is wagging the SNP dog – and that, together, they have abandoned rural Scotland.

“At the NFUS Conference, Humza Yousaf must rethink the SNP’s rural plans which will drive food prices higher without any benefit to farmers, forcing Scotland to import more food from abroad.

“Despite being backed by the NFUS, the SNP Government’s stubborn refusal to finally give gene-editing the green light in Scotland is putting our farmers at a competitive disadvantage compared to their counterparts in England.

“Delivering food security for Scotland is arguably the sector’s biggest responsibility but its ability to do so is being harmed by inaction and constitutional grievances from an SNP Government that isn’t on the side of farmers.”

Scottish Conservative MSP for Aberdeenshire West, Alexander Burnett, added: “The Scottish Conservatives have brought forward bold and ambitious plans to protect future food production in Scotland and we need the SNP-Green government to match that ambition.

“On issues ranging from gene-editing to flood prevention, the NFUS Conference will give Humza Yousaf the perfect opportunity to address the concerns of North East farmers and crofters and I urge him to consider our rural policies to safeguard the future of the industry in Scotland.”

The 10 questions are: Reinstate with immediate effect the £46m of ring-fenced funding to the rural budget, give farmers clarity and detail on the Rural Support Plan, a demand to ditch the SNP/Green coalition, bring forward a Gene-Editing Bill, include Scottish farming in the SNP’s recent pledge for a ‘new deal’ with business, cut red tape and bureaucracy, listen not lecture farmers and crofters, reassess alignment with the EU and support a regional catchment management approach to mitigate flood risk.