<p>Questions Without Notice from the Party Leaders</p>

Part of 1. 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 1:45 pm on 21 March 2017.

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Photo of Carwyn Jones Carwyn Jones Labour 1:45, 21 March 2017

Well, there’s no difficulty with what the leader of the Welsh Conservatives is saying. This Cardiff city deal and the Swansea bay deal are driven by local authorities. It’s not something that we seek to impose; the same will apply to the north Wales growth deal. I made the point yesterday: this is not about the south of Wales, or indeed about large urban areas. These are the two deals that were ready first because of the working between local authorities. The north-east, particularly, would come next, and we will look to devolve as many powers as we can, in the future. In terms of business rates, it’s more difficult because, with business rates, we know that there are many local authorities that would lose out if business rates were devolved. But we want to make sure that as many decisions are taken locally as possible, and that means local authorities being very much in the driving seat, working together to deliver for their regions and working cross-border, of course, creating prosperity both sides of the border.