Part of 1. Questions to the Minister for Finance and Trefnydd – in the Senedd at 1:41 pm on 6 March 2019.
I sympathise with Welsh Government's frustrations, clearly, but so much of this is about Welsh Government being reactive. The question is here: who is being proactive in seeking deals for Wales on funding, post Brexit or now for that matter? I've been holding discussions with some individuals this morning about the notion of free zones for trade or free ports. Where are the bids being prepared for Wales for potentially taking advantage of those kinds of new models. The north-east of England already has a bid prepared for taking advantage of perhaps the development of new free-port areas.
The question is: who can we depend on to fight for Wales? It seems to me that we can't look to the Secretary of State for Wales, because the office of the Secretary of State for Wales is redefining itself very much as UK Government's voice in Wales rather than Wales's representation at the UK Cabinet. So, we have to look to Welsh Government to go out there and seek deals for us. It seems to me that 10 members of one political party in Northern Ireland are using more leverage than the Government of our country. So, when can we expect a ramping-up of efforts by Welsh Government to be more proactive in putting together and putting forward cases for additional funding for Wales at this hugely crucial time for us as we face the uncertainty of Brexit?