I'd like to thank the Finance Committee for their report.

Over the past two decades, Wales has been the beneficiary of billions of pounds of EU funding, and we are currently receiving nearly £700 million a year. With the UK due to leave the EU in March next year, it is vital that we secure funding from the UK Government that is equal to or greater than the level of funding we receive from the EU.

The UK pays around £13 billion per annum to the EU, and money is then returned to the UK to pay for the common agricultural policy and structural funds. When Wales received Objective 1 funding in 1999, it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to improve the economy of large parts of Wales. But still, west Wales and the Valleys remain one of the poorest parts of the UK. Therefore, tackling this inequality, post Brexit, is of paramount importance. 

In 2014, Wales once again qualified for the highest level of structural funds as a lesser developed region, and this concerns me. While EU funding has delivered many improvements to Wales, it hasn’t transformed our economy. Wales remains the poorest part of the UK, and one of the poorest regions in Europe. Post Brexit, we have the opportunity to develop funding programmes that meet the needs of Wales. Structural funds can be developed and designed to meet the needs of Wales. Agri-funding schemes can be developed that benefit Wales’s environment and our farmers.

In order to achieve this, we must ensure that Wales continues to get the same level of funding. I therefore welcome the committee’s first recommendation to ensure that Wales is not a penny worse off post Brexit. In fact, I support all the committee’s recommendations.

The UK Government’s shared prosperity fund must work for Wales, and funds destined for Wales decided upon by this institution. Whatever system the UK Government comes up with for replacing EU funding programmes, it must not be used as a way of circumventing devolution. Devolution is here to stay, and we must send out a clear message that this institution is responsible for funding decisions affecting Wales.

I am pleased that the Welsh Government have accepted all the committee’s recommendations, and by us supporting the motion before us today, we will be sending a clear signal to the UK Government: guarantee the funding and allow us to decide on how best to spend it.