The South Wales Central region has complete local development plan coverage following the adoption of the Vale of Glamorgan LDP in June 2017. Local planning authorities, infrastructure providers and developers are collectively responsible for the implementation of local development plans.

From 1 March, persons aged between 16 and 21 have been able to apply for discounted bus travel in Wales. From January of next year, Transport for Wales will extend free rail travel to under 11-year-olds. Both will help create the public transport users of the future.   

The Welsh Government, through Visit Wales, works to promote the whole of Wales as a tourism destination. We work closely with local authorities and key stakeholders, for example, to produce the Neath Port Talbot destination management plan and engage with the Aberavon seafront working group.

The waste management hierarchy ranks waste incineration with energy recovery above incineration without energy recovery and landfill. Energy recovery of waste has a role to play for non-recyclable waste, provided facilities meet development planning and environmental permitting requirements. Such decisions rest with local planning authorities and Natural Resources Wales respectively.

The recent finance Ministers’ quadrilateral hosted by the Minister for Finance and Trefnydd should have been an opportunity for the UK Government to provide clarity and assurance about its plans for the spending review. However, the UK Government failed to do so, adding to the uncertainty we are already facing.     

In line with our economic action plan, we remain committed to supporting small businesses through Business Wales and the development bank that offer bilingual advice, support and finance to start and grow. Additionally, we are providing help for small businesses to get ready for Brexit with a £9.2 million business resilience programme.

We are continuing to raise this issue with the UK Government and reinforcing that regional economic policy is a devolved responsibility. Despite the UK Government’s repeated statements about respecting devolution, their approach to this fund has been slow to develop and disappointingly vague to date.

The Welsh Government is committed to supporting businesses in Wales. In 2018‑19, we are providing £210 million of support in the form of mandatory and discretionary rates reliefs. This benefits more than three quarters of ratepayers in Wales, including many businesses providing holiday and tourism services.