Part of 1. Questions to the Minister for Finance and Trefnydd – in the Senedd at 1:43 pm on 6 March 2019.
I would reject any suggestion that Welsh Government hasn't been working at pace and with real energy on this particular issue for a long time now. There are numerous meetings between the First Minister, the Prime Minister, the Brexit Minister and his counterparts, and between me and my counterparts, and all Ministers with a particular portfolio interest in this area.
During the finance quadrilateral, we talked particularly about the potential for a 'no deal' Brexit. We were very clear that, should there be a 'no deal' Brexit, there should be additional funding coming to Wales in order to help us deal with what would be a catastrophic result. The Chancellor has previously said that the spring statement that will take place next week could be a full fiscal event, yet the Chief Secretary to the Treasury tells us that the spring statement will be nothing more than an administrative event that doesn't even warrant a phone call to Welsh Government because there will be no particular areas of interest to the devolved nations.
So, Welsh Government has been working very hard in order to ensure that Wales's voice is heard and that the seriousness of the issues facing us is heard. But that doesn't mean that we're not using the funds that we do have to develop innovative ideas in order to address the risk of a 'no deal' Brexit but also the challenges that will be posed in any Brexit, which is why, of course, we have our £50 million European transition fund, which is making allocations across the breadth of Welsh life in order to ensure that we are well prepared for Brexit—well prepared to make the most of any opportunities that might arise, but also well prepared to deal with the catastrophe that might be a 'no deal' Brexit.