3. Will the First Minister provide an update on the Swansea Bay city deal? OAQ52649

The four local authorities have reached a milestone with the approval of their joint committee agreement, and that's the important step in releasing Government funding.

Thank you very much for that, considering we're some way into the lifespans of these deals. It's a shame it's taken quite that long, but, nevertheless—. The Institute for Welsh Affairs has argued that there has to be more investment, research and innovation for us to have any chance of meeting the 100 per cent of our energy demand from renewables by 2035, and the homes as power stations project is one aspect of the Swansea bay city deal.

Last week, the UK Government announced an additional £36 million for Swansea University, which is, of course, a partner in the deal, taking the investment to £100 million in eight years, so that the university can lead on innovation in energy for the UK. It's been welcomed by Tata Steel, Swansea itself, and Coastal Housing, and I'm sure you welcome it as well, but it shows that the city deal is levering interest from other parties in investment. Can you tell us how your overseas visits have helped to do the same from other parts of the world?

Well, let me give you some examples. If we look at the States, I've spent a lot of time talking to the companies that invest, particularly in Wales, from America, and the same with Japan. I've spent a lot of time with companies in Europe who invest in Wales, amongst them Airbus, for example, Ford, Toyota I've met, and all these organisations very much value the presence of a First Minister, or a Government Minister, because a Minister can open doors that officials can't and agencies can't.

What are the results? The best foreign direct investment figures for 30 years, and those figures speak for themselves, and unemployment at 3.8 per cent. That would have been unthought of in the days before devolution.

She talks, rightly—and she's right to say I'd support the initiative she's described—but a very good way of moving forward with increasing the amount of energy generated from renewable sources would have been Swansea bay tidal lagoon, which the Conservative Government rejected, thereby removing our chances of innovation, of leading the world in a technology, the creation of 1,000 jobs, and, of course, many, many homes and manufacturing plants powered by renewable energy. That is a matter of great regret to me, and it's hugely important that the UK Government continues to review the decision that it has taken and to give Wales the same fair play as it wants to give to the DUP.

I'm delighted that among the first projects to come through under the bid is the £200 million wellness village in Llanelli, which, through its innovation promises to be an exemplar for the whole of Wales. I've been discussing with the council how we can make sure it joins in with the rest of Llanelli and doesn't become some out-of-town development; the traffic in the area is already intense in peak hours. So, will the First Minister make sure that the emerging plans on the south Wales metro are dovetailed into the developments around the wellness village?

They'll be crucial. As with any development of this size, it cannot all be car-based—he's quite right. We have the Active Travel (Wales) Act 2013. It's hugely important that, as we move the metro forward, there are proper bus connections, train connections where appropriate and, of course, opportunities for active travel. No development such as the wellness village, given the fact that it is a wellness village, could properly be taken wholly seriously if active travel wasn't part of the message and the ethos of that well-being village. So, he's absolutely right to say that the last thing I'd want to see is a development creating unacceptable levels off traffic, mainly because there's no other alternative for people than to drive. We must create those alternatives.

Along the same lines as Lee Waters, if truth be told. Of course, in addition to the city deal itself, the four local authorities in the south-west of Wales acknowledge that transport is also an issue that they need to resolve at a regional level, and there has been a feasibility study into a Swansea bay metro, and a metro for the western Valleys. Clearly, this is an important step forward in developing a public transport system that is modern for the south-west of Wales, to link in with the kind of development that Lee was talking about. However, to date, virtually no details have been published since this work started on the feasibility study. When would you anticipate that the public will be told of progress on this project and will have an opportunity to discuss any ideas or plans?

Well, that is something for the local authority to progress. We will collaborate with them in order to implement the plans, but it's a matter for them. I don't think they're at fault at all, but it's up to them to ensure that they produce an effective and public scheme.