Questions Without Notice from Party Spokespeople

Part of 1. Questions to the Minister for Finance and Trefnydd – in the Senedd at 1:40 pm on 6 March 2019.

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Photo of Rebecca Evans Rebecca Evans Labour 1:40, 6 March 2019

Yes, with regard to the ports funding, our understanding is that that funding isn't new money; it's just reannounced money. So, there'll be no consequentials coming to Welsh Government as a result of that. 

With regard to the £140 million that has been provided to the Northern Ireland budget in 2019-20, that is a matter of huge concern to Welsh Government because we have a quite clear agreement with the UK Government in terms of of our statement of funding policy. Our statement of funding policy is there to offer fair funding across the nations, and this certainly is not within either the spirit or the letter of that. 

Welsh Government would have expected in the region of £246 million in consequentials for the additional funding that Northern Ireland has been given. We raised this particular issue in terms of the fairness of the funding that's gone to Northern Ireland during our finance quadrilateral. Scottish Ministers are equally as frustrated as we are, and we continue to press this. I wrote to the Chief Secretary of the Treasury just this week, expressing our deep concern and offering the Chancellor the opportunity to use the spring statement to right what is clearly a wrong.