3. Will the First Minister make a statement on Welsh Government support for start-up businesses? OAQ(5)0479(FM)

We continue to provide support for start-up businesses through the Business Wales service and we encourage business start-up from a young age through our Big Ideas campaign.

Thank you for your response, Cabinet Secretary. Last week, I met with representatives from Merthyr county borough council and Tydfil Training to talk about the support that they give to new businesses starting up in the Merthyr area, in particular their town centre enterprise development initiative, operating at the Merthyr Tydfil enterprise centre. One of their successes is the meanwhile use programme, which uses Vibrant and Viable Places funding.

Under that scheme, the enterprise centre encourages local landlords with vacant properties to let them out to new businesses. Potential start-up businesses are supported with payments of the rental on the property for an agreed period. That enables new enterprises to test out and amend their business models, based on working experience, and allows the landlord to realise the potential benefit of letting out vacant premises for business development. This has enabled seven new businesses to start up in vacant premises in the town centre.

Additionally, through the Effect programme, Merthyr Tydfil Enterprise Centre has given support to around 170 businesses in the area, created 51 jobs and safeguarded a further 151 jobs. Does the Cabinet Secretary agree with me that it is support like this that has contributed to the situation where Merthyr Tydfil has become the leading growth centre for new business in Wales? Can she give an assurance that funding under Vibrant and Viable Places, which has been so crucial to the success of these schemes, will remain a key component of the Welsh Government’s strategy to encourage new start-ups for small businesses?

Dawn Bowden does illustrate a very good way, a constructive way, in which we have been able to invest the Vibrant and Viable Places investment in the regeneration programme in Merthyr Tydfil, obviously in partnership with the local authority and other partners. I think, in terms of the way forward, this is a flagship regeneration programme—over £124 million of capital funding to support regeneration activities in 18 areas across Wales, forecasting that the programme will deliver more than 2,000 jobs, support 9,000 people into work and lever in £300 million in additional investment. So, this, of course, now takes us forward with regard to the future, particularly of the capital regeneration programme, as the current funding round draws to a close in March.

Leader of the house, data from BankSearch for Lloyds Bank show that the number of new businesses starting up across Wales has fallen by a staggering 26 per cent over the last five years. Can I ask what the Welsh Government is doing to reverse this trend? Also, can I ask what the Welsh Government is doing to encourage younger people to consider starting up their own business as a positive life choice following leaving school?

I don’t know where those figures that Russell George quotes this afternoon are emanating from, in terms of the evidence. I would like to put the record straight that the latest data show that the number of business births in Wales has grown every year since the financial crisis, and in 2015 reached a record high of 11,525. I’m sure that Russell George would agree with me that these results are extremely encouraging, and they demonstrate a climate in Wales where businesses are confident to start, grow and thrive.

A group of London-based investors, Accelerate Me, are looking to create a new fund with £4 million of their own money, hopefully backed by £6 million of Welsh Government money, to back Welsh start-ups and create a home-grown version of the highly successful Start-up Chile accelerator programme. Does the leader of the house agree that this kind of approach, supporting indigenous businesses and connecting them with external capital and knowledge, should be at the heart of the Welsh Government’s new economic strategy? On that basis, would she urge her Cabinet colleagues to meet with the proposers of the idea?

I don’t think there’s a word that I would disagree with, Adam Price, and I think the Cabinet Secretary would be only too delighted to meet with the London-based investors. I think that it’s important that you mentioned indigenous businesses. We are continuing to support indigenous business. We’ve got a record number of active enterprises headquartered in Wales. The latest figures show that Wales has the highest number of new businesses in over a decade. To date, £13 million has been invested in 1,703 start-ups in Wales through the Start Up Loans company. So, this is very encouraging—that there are more who want to invest in Wales.

Question 4 [OAQ(5)0464(FM)] is withdrawn. Question 5, John Griffiths.