A leading Mid Wales farming union today backed the findings of two major research reports that villages in the region could die because of a lack of jobs and affordable housing.

Bosses at the Farmers’ Union of Wales said the findings echoed concerns it had held for many years for the future of rural communities.

The claims were made by the Government’s rural advocate Dr Stuart Burgess who said unless urgent action was taken villages in Shropshire and Mid Wales would become “the preserve of holidaymakers and the retired”.

He said four out of 10 people aged between 16 and 24 in the English countryside were unemployed or economically inactive while it was impossible for most to get on the property ladder.

Similar findings were presented in the latest Wales Rural Observatory’s report on “Deep Rural Localities” which investigated how Welsh rural communities were coping.

Farmers’ Union of Wales president Gareth Vaughan said today: “Many of the conclusions of the Wales Rural Observatory report are in line with the union’s ongoing concerns, highlighted over several years, and we are not surprised that they support our standpoint on such issues.

“We have regularly called for planning changes to allow for more affordable housing in a bid to stem the migration of young people from rural areas.

“Increased public transport provision and improved broadband and mobile phone coverage are also a crucial necessity.”