5. What steps will the Welsh Government take to strengthen Wales’s international relationships? OAQ(5)0469(FM)

Building international relationships is core Welsh Government activity. This week, the First Minister hosted the London-based diplomatic corps and is visiting the United States of America. The Cabinet Secretary for Environment and Rural Affairs and the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Local Government are in Dubai and will be in Brussels this week. Last week, the Cabinet Secretary for Economy and Infrastructure visited China.

Thank you for that. Cabinet Secretary, the European Union is a great economic, social and political force in the world, and leaving the European Union threatens to greatly diminish the standing of Wales and the UK in the world. So, could you reassure me that as far as Wales is concerned, the Welsh Government must find new ways of working with the European Union and European Union member states in the run-up to Brexit and beyond, and that the UK Government should commit, through its Brexit negotiations, to securing continuing participation in key European Union programmes open to non-member states, such as Horizon 2020 and Erasmus+, and, indeed, to securing continued participation in trans-national economic development programmes, particularly with our close neighbour, the Republic of Ireland?

I thank John Griffiths for that question because we make it very clear in our White Paper, ‘Securing Wales’ Future’, that Wales is leaving the EU but not Europe, and we strongly believe that Wales and the UK should continue to participate in those key EU programmes. You mention Horizon 2020; that’s supporting research and development projects between higher education and private sector partners. Erasmus+: again, those education exchanges can transform the prospects and opportunities of young people. We want to see a far-reaching and far clearer commitment from the UK Government to securing this outcome from the Brexit negotiations and, of course, they form part of the negotiations, which Cabinet Secretaries are engaged with. But you also mention Ireland. That is also crucially important because we have the Ireland-Wales programme, the directly managed programme, which we are responsible for, which also includes a number of very important R&D projects and, indeed, projects and initiatives that can improve and constructively help Wales as well as Ireland.

Leader of the house, it’s clearly vital that we develop stronger economic links across the world in the wake of the vote to leave the European Union and if we could still in some way access schemes such as Horizon 2020 and similar programmes following Brexit in some way then that would be a bonus, so I was pleased to hear you mention that. However, I would say a trade mission—and obviously the First Minister is away on a trade mission at the moment—only works if enough planning has gone into it and the right companies have been invited in good time and the mission is clear about its objectives. That didn’t happen entirely back in 2012 on the previous US mission of that time. Has it happened this time around? Who is on that mission with the First Minister and have they been given adequate preparation time?

Well, I’m disappointed that you speak of trade missions disparagingly and don’t welcome the trade missions. For example—and I will go on to your point about the US trade mission. But, last week, I’m sure you would welcome the fact that the Cabinet Secretary, Ken Skates, actually had an important visit to China—obviously he’s responsible for economy and transport—with two new investments announced, including Acerchem International establishing an European HQ and R&D facility in Wales with the creation of 38 high-tech jobs, and two new stores in Wales by Flooring REPUBLIC. Of course, there are clear links with the US in terms of the fact that we have not only those US companies based in Wales who are informing our trade mission, but also demonstrating the impact that we can have with a leader, a Welsh Labour First Minister, going to the States, saying that Wales is clearly open for business.

As chair of the Wales international cross-party group, it’s been good to see a consensus developing across the parties on the need to develop the relationship and to develop the potential of close links between Wales and its diaspora. At the latest meeting of the group, there was agreement on the need for the Welsh Government to develop a clear strategy on how to secure that, and that in addition to the kinds of international relationships it’s undertaking at the moment, and trade visits and so on and so forth. So, does the leader of the house agree with the group on this point, and what steps are being put in place by Government to ensure that those links with the diaspora are effectively developed?

It’s very welcome that we have a cross-party group, and Rhun ap Iorwerth you are chairing that and bringing together that consensus that we need here in this Chamber to support our First Minister, who is in the US. Welsh Government has always promoted Wales around St David’s Day and that is a key focus of these visits, and also indeed not only in terms of visits to the USA, China, Dubai, Brussels—there are also events happening in embassies and high commissions across Europe and elsewhere. I think it is important that we recognise that, for example, the First Minister is—his programme in the US includes business and political meetings. He’ll make a statement, as Cabinet Secretaries always do on their return from these trade missions, and recognising that it is with the diaspora that we engage, so, it is with those companies in Wales that are the US companies, but also that the trade mission and cultural delegation visiting China also provided a profile. So, I’ve already given you some outcomes from the Chinese trade mission. I’m sure we will have outcomes from the US visit by the First Minister in due course.