Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 2:22 pm on 6 November 2018.
Acting leader of the house, may I ask for a statement from the Cabinet Secretary for Finance on Welsh Government support for the retail industry? The Welsh retail industry is under considerable pressure due to the growth in the number of customers shopping online and the increased burden of business rates. Welsh retailers already pay a quarter of all Welsh business rates and it is becoming increasingly expensive to operate from property, so much so that the Welsh Retail Consortium has projected that over a fifth of shops could close as the next decade progresses. The Chancellor, in this budget, announced funding to cut business rates by a third over two years, saving 90 per cent of all shops in England up to £8,000 each year. Can we have a statement on what measures the Welsh Government is taking to support the retail sector in Wales, please?