Vaughan Gething: Well, some of the schemes that we're going to provide should bear fruit rather more immediately. For example, we've got the opportunity to carry on supporting young entrepreneurs through Big Ideas Wales—you can see those people starting up their businesses; you can see the barriers to employment fund that we're providing. So, you'll find some of them will have a more immediate impact and...
Vaughan Gething: Thank you. We have a suite of business-support products available through the Business Wales service to support start-ups with a variety of subjects, from hiring staff to identifying appropriate finance. Providing start-up opportunities is also a key strand of the young person's guarantee offer.
Vaughan Gething: That's part of the reason why it's been so important to try to maintain the investment in not just skills, but also in the business support service that we provide through Business Wales, because we can provide a bespoke package of support, for either individuals or for particular areas. Now, I think that would be something that would be well worth exploring between my officials and RCT, as...
Vaughan Gething: We are working with a wide range of partners to understand the potential economic impact of a visitor levy in Wales. It will be for local authorities to decide if they raise a levy on visitors. They will be empowered in local authorities to make their own judgment with support from the Welsh Government.
Vaughan Gething: I know that Darren Millar regularly likes to get excited—
Vaughan Gething: —and be fast and free with phrases, but, look, I think he might want to pause and take some time on the subs bench while this issue is being decided by the grown ups. You see, when you look across Europe and north America, when you look at where a levy is a regular part of the tourism industry, you don't find anything to support the scaremongering and world-ending predictions that he...
Vaughan Gething: The Welsh Government remains fully committed to supporting micro, small and medium enterprises in all parts of Wales. SMEs can access a wide range of information, advice and support through our Business Wales service and, of course, the Development Bank of Wales.
Vaughan Gething: Well, there's a range of strands within the young person's guarantee that may help, but there's a range of other challenges that businesses may face. So, for example, there's a job matching service in understanding how you match people to job opportunities that exist; there's the work of the ReAct+ service, which is going to be a new, bespoke service, again looking to wrap around what...
Vaughan Gething: Financial support was available to retail, hospitality, leisure and tourism businesses, alongside the cultural recovery fund and the spectator support fund. To date, over £66.8 million has been offered through these funds. In addition, many businesses are still benefiting from the 100 per cent rates relief holiday, which runs for the entire financial year, unlike, of course, businesses on...
Vaughan Gething: So, in the longer term, you will be aware that we have already set out that there'll be rates relief next year. It will match the package on offer in England. You will also be aware that we're having conversations about how we support the future of the economy, but that is in a more challenging position because of the budget settlement we have and because of the reality that shared prosperity...
Vaughan Gething: Our Net Zero Wales plan includes an Industry and Business chapter setting out action for a quicker transition to renewable energy and better energy efficiency practices. Action includes our business productivity enhancement programme that businesses in South Wales Central have accessed to provide a diagnostic to become greener and more competitive.
Vaughan Gething: The shared prosperity fund will have far greater potential for Wales if the UK Government works with us to implement the Welsh framework for regional investment that has been co-designed with stakeholders, supported by a public consultation and endorsed by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
Vaughan Gething: Our 'town centre first' policy, embedded in our national planning framework, 'Future Wales', means that town centres should be the first consideration for all decisions on the location of workplaces and services in order to support local economies.
Vaughan Gething: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. It's a pleasure to be back in the Chamber today. In the programme for government, we set out the actions that we will pursue over this Senedd term to help ensure that nobody is left behind, nobody is held back and everyone has the opportunity to reach their potential. Today I am pleased to launch the plan for employability and skills, to set out what we...
Vaughan Gething: Thank you for the series of questions. I will try to deal with as many of them as I can without testing the patience of the Deputy Presiding Officer. On to your starting points, when it comes to the part that the young person's guarantee will play, it's clearly a key component of what we're trying to do with the employability and skills plans. And in not just today's plan, but in my...
Vaughan Gething: And I'm pleased you mentioned Jobs Growth Wales+. It's a new programme, combining what we've learned from traineeships and the Jobs Growth Wales programme, to help people into work or to get them the skills they need to get into work in the first place. And we've learned about the support that different people will need at various points to make sure they're ready to go on and acquire those...
Vaughan Gething: Thank you for the questions and the comments. I recognise that work, and in particular good work, is often a protective factor for people's mental health. It isn't a guarantee, but I also know that poor work can have a really detrimental impact on people's mental health. I know from my former time as an employment lawyer, when I've seen people who worked in a poor workplace having difficult...
Vaughan Gething: I thank the Member for the questions. I'm not sure how far linked and how closely linked they are to the plan, but I'm happy to address the points that I think are being made. Because, again, in my past, when I've run equal pay claims, you very quickly get to see what looks unusual, and you then have to try and prove them. So, for example, in areas where there are gender-segregated jobs and...
Vaughan Gething: Thank you for the question. Yes, I am particularly interested, as indeed are our climate change Ministers, in supply chain opportunities for renewables in all their forms; there's much to offer in both north and south Wales on those opportunities for us. And it will require us to have a conversation with businesses as well as the UK Government, as well as the partners that we have in devolved...
Vaughan Gething: I'm very pleased that Jack Sargeant has highlighted our track record on delivering and, in fact, overachieving our pledge in the last Senedd term. We pledged 100,000 apprentices; we got to over 112,000. Of course, we had the ability to draw on European funding at the time, so 125,000—a 25 per cent increase on our previous target—is going to be more difficult to achieve, but I'm confident...
