Thank you, Llywydd. I am pleased to speak in this debate today, on behalf, of course, of the Finance Committee. The committee had an opportunity to meet on 27 June to discuss the Welsh Government’s first supplementary budget for this year, 2019-20. We were delighted to be able to hold that evidence session in Aberystwyth, of course. I’m also pleased that the Minister was able to join us for that meeting, and I thank her very much for coming to that session with us in Aberystwyth.

Now, our main area of concern as a committee with regard to this supplementary budget is with the actions of the UK Government. The UK Government, of course, as we’ve heard, made a decision in relation to public sector pensions. However, they are not fully funding this decision in Wales. The statement of funding policy states that where a UK Government decision leads to additional costs and where other arrangements do not exist to adjust for such extra costs, then additional costs will be met by that Government.

It was clear to the committee that the statement of funding policy has not been correctly implemented in this instance, and as a committee we also will be writing to the UK Government to express our serious concerns about this issue. Whilst the Welsh Government, as we have heard, has agreed to make up the funding shortfall this year for public sector bodies in Wales, the committee, as you might imagine, is concerned that there is no confirmation of future funding, and we need urgent reassurance from the UK Government on this matter.

Another area of concern for us as a committee was the funding surrounding the M4 relief road. The Minister confirmed that the Government would borrow to increase spending capacity, but, as the M4 relief road would not be going ahead, the Minister could not confirm what the funds raised from borrowing would be used for. Members want to understand what projects will be funded that may require the Welsh Government to increase its spending capacity. In evidence, it was also not clear how the M4 commission would proceed. The Government has told us that the M4 commission will have ‘first call’ on funding that was due to be made available to the black route project, yet we also understood that the £20 million that had been allocated for a potential M4 relief road has now been placed in reserves. 

There is no detail in this supplementary budget as to how the next steps around the M4 will progress. The committee has therefore requested details on the funding the Welsh Government intends to provide for the M4 commission, and further details on the funding priorities within the Government’s 2019-20 capital programme—in light, of course, of the decision not to proceed with the M4 project, particularly with regard to how this has impacted its borrowing strategy.

Now, in this Chamber on 29 April, the Government declared a climate emergency. Yet, despite this declaration, this budget does not identify any change in priorities for the Government. We have seen no evidence as to how decision making has been informed by the emergency declaration. We have requested further information from the Government on how future budgets will be planned in the context of a climate emergency.

Finally, this supplementary budget is presented in the context, of course, of there still not being an agreed Brexit deal. On the day that the supplementary budget was laid, the Minister announced a capital investment package totalling £85 million, presented, of course, in the context of Brexit. And whilst we welcome this investment, of course, it's not clear how this funding meets the Welsh Government's priorities in terms of its Brexit strategy, and we have asked for additional information on this. This funding package, for example, allocates £20 million to local authorities, but it's unclear how this Government intends local authorities to utilise this funding, and we would welcome clarity on this, as we would welcome it on the other matters that I've raised. Thank you.