Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. I’d like to begin by thanking Members for their contributions today and for the opportunity to speak in this debate. As has been made clear in the course of this debate, the Severn crossings are a key link in our transport and economic infrastructure, and, as part of the strategic M4 corridor, the crossings are the primary gateway to Wales, and they provide businesses with access not just to markets in England, but beyond, to mainland Europe.

Many individuals who run and own businesses in Wales are concerned at the high cost of the Severn crossings toll. They feel it represents a barrier to business activity across the bridge, hampering Welsh growth and acting as a deterrent to inward investment. In particular, they argue that the toll adversely affects small businesses, especially those engaged in the tourism, transport and logistics sectors, which rely heavily on the Severn crossings link for their businesses. Responsibility for the crossings and the levying of tolls currently lies with the UK Government. The arrangements are set out in the Severn Bridges Act 1992, which allows the concessionaire, Severn River Crossings plc, to collect the fixed sum of money from tolls. In accordance with the Act, the current concession is scheduled to finish by the end of 2017, when the crossings will come back into public ownership.

The First Minister wrote to the Chancellor in February of this year and made clear that the tolls should be removed once the concession ends. The UK Government intends to go out to consultation by the end of this year on arrangements for the future of the crossings, including on a proposed reduction in the level of tolling. Given their strategic significance to Wales, we have been in regular discussion with the UK Government to try and ensure that the proposed arrangements represent the best deal for Wales and not an unfair tax on our people and businesses. The UK Government has made very clear that it will not hand over ownership of the crossings to us. Last week, I met with the Rt Hon Chris Grayling MP, Secretary of State for Transport, to discuss the tolls and to set out the Welsh Government’s position, and, at that meeting, I made the Welsh Government’s position very clear—that the tolls should be removed at the earliest opportunity, alleviating the burden on the economy and removing the significant threat they represent to trade in a post-Brexit world. I re-emphasised that the report we commissioned on the effect of the tolls concludes,

‘tolls effectively increase the cost of doing business in south Wales, thereby making south Wales a less attractive location for investment.’

Removing the tolls would boost productivity in Wales by £100 million.

Of course, I do recognise that there are those who have concerns about removal of the tolls; that their abolition could lead to an increase of traffic on the roads. I do take very seriously these concerns. I am conscious that, in positioning ourselves as a Welsh Government as being in favour of removing tolls, we have to think carefully about how this impacts on our responsibilities to the environment and to future generations. It is why I believe that it is important for us to undertake transport planning in a way that ensures we are balancing the need for economic sustainability with the very real and important duties we have under the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015. Through our work to progress the metro and in taking forward the Active Travel (Wales) Act 2013, I believe that we are doing that. I am clear: enshrining the sustainable development principles of the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015 has to be an ongoing piece of work for this Government.

Similarly, we have to consider that cross-border links are not just an issue for south Wales. Improving transport connectivity at gateway points in north and mid Wales is also crucial for Wales’s economy. In my meeting with the Secretary of State, I also stressed how important it is to improve transport connectivity for north Wales, and in particular I discussed the rail infrastructure improvements proposed by the north Wales and Mersey Dee rail taskforce. The Secretary of State is considering these improvements, and I have asked him to support the package of measures as part of control period 6.

It is essential that we continue to press the UK Government to deliver on improvements for transport infrastructure across all parts of Wales, which brings me back to the future of the tolls. Whilst we acknowledge the proposed reduction in tolls by the UK Government, we do not believe there is a case for continuing to charge tolls on the Severn bridges to fund ongoing maintenance once the concession ends. Tolls represent an unfair tax, and we believe that the UK Government should pay for their maintenance, not the people and businesses of Wales.

We will continue to argue for the tolls be scrapped immediately on coming back into public ownership. However, if the UK Government decides to continue tolling, the toll levels must not exceed the costs of operation. The UK Government must not make a profit from the bridges, nor should it seek to recover costs that they have sunk over the past 50 years in the establishment, management and maintenance of the bridges—that money has been spent and already paid for through general taxation. It is not appropriate for the UK Government to try to recover a further £60 million on the basis that prior expenditure was associated with the crossings. Tolls should not be used for general revenue generation for the UK Treasury.

The Welsh Affairs Select Committee recently calculated that the annual operating costs of the Severn bridges amount to around £30 million. On current traffic volumes, this suggests that the tolls could be around one sixth of their current levels rather than one half, as the UK Government is proposing.

We have also made clear to the UK Government that if it decides to continue tolling, free-flow technology should be introduced and that it need not be as costly as they currently seem to think. There should be no physical barriers preventing the free movement of traffic between England and Wales. We do not think that comparisons with the Dartford tunnel are appropriate, as the technology there needs to be far more sophisticated as it is not just used for toll collection.

So, in conclusion, this Government’s position is that the tolls should be scrapped immediately when the bridges come back into public ownership. If they are not, the UK Government must recognise that any attempt to retain tolls that generate a surplus for the UK Government, and without the removal of all physical barriers, penalises and diminishes the economic interests of Wales.