7. 7. UKIP Wales Debate: Brexit and the Economy

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 5:58 pm on 14 September 2016.

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Photo of Carwyn Jones Carwyn Jones Labour 5:58, 14 September 2016

I’ve listened to David Rowlands’s contributions over the weeks and he shares a particular view of the world with me: he doesn’t want to see people being exploited. But there are plenty in his party who don’t care, I can promise him. They’re more than happy to see people exploited over their own people, for their world is about low regulation, low wages and who cares. That’s what many in his party there—that’s what their view is. But, again, it comes back to the point that this has nothing to do with the EU—it’s the failure of the UK Government. Why do we have the minimum wage? Why isn’t is being enforced by the UK authorities? That’s the question—the fair question—that he asked. So, it’s hugely important. I have no problem with people coming here—I know them. A lot of them own their own businesses, for a start—they’re not exploiting themselves—but, at the end of the day, he puts a failure at the door of the EU that is firmly at the door of the UK in failing to actually make sure that people are not being exploited. He raises a fair point in that regard. But, nevertheless, I don’t agree with the way that he has raised it.

He talks about farming, Italian farming is amongst the most efficient in the world, actually. German faming is the same. British farming has subsidies, and I don’t argue against that because I know how important subsidies are to our farming industry. But it’s simply a myth to suggest that British farming is super-efficient compared to other countries in Europe. It just isn’t true. I’ve seen them in that regard. So, we have to be very, very careful about suggesting that somehow the common agricultural policy is designed to operate against Welsh and British farmers.

Finally—I’m coming to an end on this point—the second point I welcome. Yes, it is hugely important that we should be able to tailor agricultural and fisheries policies as far as Wales is concerned. It is in complete contrast to what Mark Reckless said yesterday when he said that what we wanted was a policy that operated across the UK without apparently any flexibility as far as Wales is concerned. So, I welcome the conversion over the past 24 hours.