5. Welsh Conservatives Debate: Urban Renewal

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 3:38 pm on 6 June 2018.

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Photo of Rebecca Evans Rebecca Evans Labour 3:38, 6 June 2018

I agree that it has to be locally led and locally delivered, which is why it's important for areas that have the opportunity to become business improvement districts to look at the success that has been generated in other parts of Wales, where the local members and local businesses have decided to opt in.

I can see that time is running out, so I will bring things to a close by talking very briefly about the fact that we continue to use EU funding in support of regeneration activity through our £50 million Building for the Future programme. Their first project was announced recently in Pontypridd and I look forward to making further announcements soon. It's really important that we don't try to adopt a one-size-fits-all approach to regeneration. Every place is different and everywhere will require a bespoke approach. Our support is flexible and it does enable just that to happen. So, in that context, it must be undertaken in partnership and that was really well recognised in the Carnegie work, which I referred to at the very start of my contribution. Promoting strong, urban centres can't be done by national Government alone. Although we will show leadership, it does need to be owned by the communities involved, and that is the spirit very much in which we will continue.