Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 2:38 pm on 17 January 2017.
Well, I make no apologies for reiterating a lot of what’s been said in the Chamber today, because I think it’s such an important factor to the Welsh economy. My colleague’s outlined very effectively the legal position with regard to the Government’s proposal to retain the bridge tolls after the transition date. I would like to concentrate on the financial situation with regard to the retention, at whatever level, of the bridge tolls. The Severn bridge tolls are nothing less than a tax on Welsh businesses, and a definite barrier to any business wishing to locate in Wales, particularly those that have markets largely in England or the continent. Bridge tolls can add thousands of pounds a year to the operational costs of such businesses. UKIP will accept nothing less than zero tolls. The British people pay huge amounts of money through the excise licence levy; maintenance costs of both the old and new Severn bridges would amount to a tiny fraction of this revenue. We urge the Welsh Government to make the strongest representations to the UK Government with regard to their legal ability to retain these tolls at whatever level.