Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 4:03 pm on 1 November 2016.
Leader of the house, could I ask for three statements, if possible, please? The first is: you and I were on Cowbridge High Street on Saturday, where many businesses highlighted the revaluation exercise that has been undertaken and the huge increases that many of those businesses will be facing in the coming financial year that, basically, put a real question mark over their viability. I heard the comments from the First Minister in FMQs today, where he alluded to the £10 million transition fund that has been established. It was my understanding that this transition money was already available there and will offer little recompense for the mighty uplift that many of the businesses will be facing in the next financial year. So, I’d be grateful, from the Welsh Government, for a statement to actually point out what assistance is there, but, secondly, what other measures might be forthcoming from the Welsh Government in light of the increasing evidence that is coming forward from businesses, not just in the Vale of Glamorgan, but the length and breadth of Wales, that does pose a huge, huge question mark over the future of many small and medium-sized businesses on high streets and in communities the length and breadth of Wales.
The second statement I’d like to seek, if possible, please, is from the Minister for transport in relation to transport arrangements on the international weekend that’s coming up in Cardiff, when football and rugby are going to be played on the same weekend, with the potential of 100,000 fans of one sort or other coming to our great capital city. That, in one respect, is to be celebrated. It’s a huge commercial opportunity and, indeed, it’s a great cultural event to celebrate both the rugby and the football teams playing in the same city. Regrettably, past experiences have shown that the transport opportunities, especially when the final whistle has gone on events held in Cardiff, have proven to be—shall we say—problematic on certain occasions. It would be good to hear from the Minister what action the Welsh Government has taken with the various authorities to make sure that any potential problems and lessons learned exercises from previous events held in the capital city have been put in place, so that we are not here on the Tuesday after the weekend reflecting on traffic chaos, and we are hopefully celebrating two very strong Welsh wins instead, with complimentary comments coming from the many fans that have come into our capital city.
The final statement, if possible, please, is from the Minister for the economy in relation to expansion at Cardiff Airport. I’d be most grateful to find out exactly what plans and what money has been made available to Cardiff Airport for expansion plans. It’s my understanding that, within the gift of the airport, there are some 400-odd acres of land already in its ownership, and one would assume that that would be a sizeable block of development land available to it. It has been brought to my attention by constituents in the area that agents acting on behalf of the Welsh Government have been in discussions about acquiring additional land from people who own land in the immediate area of the airport, and I’d be grateful to understand why this expansion, considering the 400 acres that the airport already owns in the area, is being considered, and what type of expansion and development is being considered for this new land if it were to be purchased by the Welsh Government on behalf of Cardiff Airport.