Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 3:06 pm on 22 May 2018.
We always welcome any new thinking in economic strategy and the Cabinet Secretary will be aware that I'm myself trying to engage positively with him. It's in all of our interests that, actually, the high-level goals at the heart of any economic strategy are achieved. But, I have to say, if what we get is an ever lengthening series of vague statements, that initial enthusiasm, that there is a genuine paradigm shift in thinking here, will soon be dissipated, and what we were left with is a growing sense that what this is is an economic inaction plan.
Can I ask him—? There was precious little detail really in the statement that he just read out or in the press release. Is there anything more than that? Is there more detail in documents around the calls to action, on the economic contract, and on the economy futures fund? And, if those documents exist, why haven't we got them, so that we can ask more intelligent questions of you? I think our own Standing Orders, actually, dictate that if a statement refers to Government documents then they must be provided for all Members. Now, I've seen Labour Members, actually, with some glossy document on the economic action plan, which the Cabinet Secretary may be about to hold up. Well, maybe he can confirm that an advance copy wasn't given to Labour Members in the Labour group meeting, because that would be, absolutely, an abuse of Government resources. We need all Members to be involved in the development of Government policy.
In terms of the detail of what he said, the cross-Government delivery board that he mentioned—can he just explain to me how is that different to, or is that taking the place of, the strategic delivery and performance board that, certainly up until recently, I think the Permanent Secretary chaired? And how is it different to the delivery unit, the First Minister's delivery unit, which was launched with a great fanfare in 2011 and then sort of disappeared with a whimper in 2016? Isn't there a danger that we've been here before? And where's the sense of urgency, Cabinet Secretary, in what you've said today and what you've said previously? There are great opportunities: the lowest interest rates in history, a massive increase—you've got to applaud the UK Government—in terms of research and development, the biggest R&D investment that we've ever seen across the UK, and all the potential in terms of technology, industry 4.0. Are we grasping that, and where's the urgency in what he has said? And, indeed, on measurement as well, how can we get the critical challenge that he referred to in terms of the ministerial advisory board if we're not clear what we are measuring?
Finally, the First Minister earlier said that the Public Accounts Committee report was a serious report, and there will be an opportunity for the Government to respond in full, but it does say that the project
'created a strong impression to the committee of a department'— his department—
'which was not properly in control of its business'.
Are the changes that the Cabinet Secretary has announced today a candid admission that this was a dysfunctional department, and isn't the first step in changing that an admission of previous failure?