Diolch. Preparations are accelerating for a 'no deal' Brexit. Stockpiling medicine and food is getting the attention of the media, but the reality for the Welsh economy could be far more austere. Our economic policy has focused on providing support to so-called anchor companies—large multinationals with bases in Wales that we have favoured with grants and other financial inducements. But once barriers start popping up that create costly delays, the judgments made in the global head offices of where to put future investment will quickly disfavour Wales. As this week’s comments by Ford in Europe signalled, we may find soon that anchors are pulled up.

It seems to me that part of what we must do is confront the fact that we cannot continue to give large grants to huge corporations to entice them to stay in our communities when the going gets tough. The going is already tough, and we are pouring much needed resources into a sieve, watching our investments drained away to tax havens, for little lasting return on the ground. Wales has had great success in pursuing foreign capital. We've had record low levels of unemployment. We have record levels of foreign direct investment. And yet, many people are still profoundly disconnected, working in fragile jobs for low wages.

Llywydd, the economy isn’t just about GVA. It’s also about people’s lived experiences, and a foundational economy approach allows us to rethink. Almost half of the people in Wales are employed in what we might think of as the foundational economy: the mundane, everyday part of our economy; the parts delivering basic goods and services in their communities—care, food, energy and housing, to name just some—the parts that can’t easily shift when the international economy dips. And this grounded sector has been neglected by policy right across the UK as we’ve focused on the next shiny project, and the next ribbon-cutting opportunity. And we have to change that.