Vaughan Gething: No-one is arguing that co-ops or mutuals are a magic bullet and guarantee survival; that's always been the case. And I recognise of course that the Member is right to highlight that in the finance sector, there is a long tradition of successful mutuals, and a business model that I think is here to stay for the future. We already have in Wales extensive support available for the sector....
Vaughan Gething: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. I'd like to thank Huw Irranca-Davies for bringing forward today's debate. I should make clear that I, too, am a Welsh Labour and Co-operative member, as I have been since my election to this place in 2011. I think it is an important and a timely discussion, and I want to thank Members for their thoughtful contributions, including a note of disagreement in...
Vaughan Gething: I think it's relevant to people in Islwyn and in every constituency and region across Wales; it's our ability to invest in future industries with the level of certainty we will need. The stability that the Welsh Government can provide needs to be matched by a level of consistency from the UK Government as well, because, actually, if we have a slightly chaotic approach to the future, with all...
Vaughan Gething: Well, it's our job to make sure those people do have a future where they don't need to get out to get on. And, actually, when we visited Flowtech yesterday, we found that lots of people were within walking distance of that employer as well, so a genuinely local business properly grounded in that community. And, of course, as the Member for the Rhondda has said, they're not just having an...
Vaughan Gething: Well, I think it's the definition of what we call a 'green new deal'. When you hear Julie James talk about the second low-carbon delivery plan, we hear lots about leading to a green new economy to make sure that we improve our impact—our environmental impact—on our activity today, and make sure we can take advantage of those industries that are here already. We've recently had...
Vaughan Gething: Well, it's an interesting series of comments. I'm not sure he's listened to the statement or the previous answers I've given where I've talked about investing in skills and talked about investing in young people. We've talked about the fact the Welsh economy has improved during the course of devolution, and I'm very proud to follow Ken Skates in this role: someone who really did make a...
Vaughan Gething: Thank you for those questions. Actually, the productivity challenge is something for every modern economy, and it's part of the reason why investing in talent is so important. Because unless you can change systems of work, or unless you can increase individuals' ability to do their job better or faster, the productivity challenge is there for all of us in virtually every sector. So, that's...
Vaughan Gething: I think there were two questions at the end of that, and on the first, on the life sciences sector, it is a key opportunity for us. Now, the health Minister, Eluned Morgan, and I have had conversations about this in the previous term, in our different roles, and again during this term as well, because we do recognise that this is an area where Wales does punch above its weight, and there are...
Vaughan Gething: Thank you to the Member for his comments and questions. I'll start with the point that he makes about talent and how we provide young people with a real future in Wales, and also the linked point about diaspora—those people who have moved either for university or for other work opportunities, and the opportunities for those people to be part of the future of Wales within Wales as well. It's...
Vaughan Gething: It's one of the levers that we do have within our control, and, as you'll know, the lead Minister on procurement is the finance Minister, Rebecca Evans, but it's an area where lots of us have a direct interest from our different portfolio perspectives. So, you can expect to hear more about what we're looking to do in terms of valuing Welsh procurement—not just about the spend and the amount...
Vaughan Gething: I thank the Member for his series of questions, and I'll try to run through as many of them as I can in the time available. I can say that I've had regular contact with business groups, businesses, local government and trade unions since my appointment. So, this is the next stage in the conversation that is happening with them. I think it's knowingly inaccurate to suggest that I haven't had a...
Vaughan Gething: Thank you, Llywydd. Yesterday I held an economic summit to outline my ambitions for moving our economy forward as we strive for a stronger, fairer and greener Wales. I was pleased to be joined by the Confederation of British Industry, the Wales Trades Union Congress, the Federation of Small Businesses and the Welsh Local Government Association to start a conversation about how we can work...
Vaughan Gething: But we are clear in our ambition for an economic recovery that builds a fairer, greener and more prosperous Wales. And the Member was right to highlight the investment in the Tech Valleys programme, which is a part of that vision, and it is gaining traction; it's seeing more results. I was recently at the Thales facility, and others, and the Member noticed that I was there. I was very pleased...
Vaughan Gething: During my statement last month on UK plans for replacement EU funding and the broad levelling-up agenda, I shared not just my concerns, but those of other devolved national Governments in the UK, parliaments, committees and leading experts. It still remains the case that the UK Government approach to date is incoherent, chaotic, has no considerable or coherent economic rationale, and the...
Vaughan Gething: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. Can I begin by thanking Alun Davies for bringing forward this debate today? It's a genuinely interesting and timely discussion in a number of ways. I want to thank both Members for their thoughtful contributions. Most of my remarks will be about the Heads of the Valleys area, of course, because of where Alun Davies is from, as he regularly reminds us, and...
Vaughan Gething: We’ve designed our COVID support through the pandemic to help businesses to survive and to get ready for trading again. We’ve had emergency support, including at times when that trade has been restricted, and we’ve had to do that on a basis that is objective and fair, and to understand the costs that exist for those individual businesses. To try to design that on the basis of a broader,...
Vaughan Gething: Well, this is about working alongside providers in the way we award our apprenticeships, but more than that it’s about our ability to continue to invest in the future. This may sound a bit like a broken record, but it’s really important not to lose sight of this. Certainty on funding to support those apprenticeships is hugely important and to reinvest in the skills of the current...
Vaughan Gething: Thank you. Our priorities for north Wales, as with all parts of Wales, are set out in our programme for government, which was published in June this year.
Vaughan Gething: I'd be very happy to make sure that those conversations are taking place, if they're not already, because, as I say, this is a real opportunity for growth, where there are good jobs available and a real future for this industry. This isn't going to go away in the next few years. It will become more important—more important to have the right number of these chips available, but also,...
Vaughan Gething: Actually, we're working alongside the industry to do just that. One of my early meetings was within the compound semiconductor cluster. I met one of the companies and I also met the Catapult as well, so I do understand the significance of the spread of semiconductors already. The challenge is that, actually, they're in more and more of our devices—in your mobile phone and your car and you...
