I think the budgetary context is changing so much and the chaos that we face is intensifying to such an extent that it’s very difficult to come to any definite conclusions on what the likely impact of the Chancellor’s statement would be. We can't say what the value of the additional £593 million would be, and I use the word 'additional' in quotation marks. It’s very difficult to say what the additional costs will be as a result of the Brexit chaos. We know that billions of pounds in addition have been provided by the UK Government in preparation for Brexit—oh, the irony—but we don't really know what the costs of responding to Brexit will be from the Welsh Government’s coffers. There will be costs, inevitably, of course.

We can't say what the impact on taxation revenue will be. Every piece of evidence suggests that the impact will be negative. The economy could shrink by 10 per cent. And, even if that happens only over a brief period of time, the impact of that would be very detrimental indeed and it would have an impact on the public purse. But also bear in mind that there has been no statement made by Boris Johnson's Government on the shared prosperity fund and, without additional funding to replace European funding if we leave the European Union, then we will lose out by hundreds of millions of pounds from the very outset. So that’s the background. We can't measure the value of this money.

A few questions from me. This was a one-year statement, not a three-year statement. Can you tell us if there is an intention at this particular point to provide more funding into reserves? Because of uncertainties at quite a fundamental level from 2021-22 forward, we will have to prepare for that uncertainty. I also welcome, as a member of the Business Committee and the Finance Committee, as it happens, the intention to bring the budget statements forward. The more time we have to scrutinise those and to go out and discuss them with stakeholders, then all the better, of course.

But may I ask for an assurance, soon, that a decade of cuts to local government funding specifically must come to an end? We must see real increases in budgets now. A flat settlement for next year isn't going to be acceptable. In Ynys Môn, for example, I was discussing with council officials just this week and we will need something in the region of £6 million just to stand still. That is the reality of the situation. And yes, Ynys Môn council had to make the difficult decision to increase council tax by up to 10 per cent last year. They cannot think about increasing it by the same amount next year. That wouldn't be sustainable for my constituents, so that option has gone out of the window. So a flat settlement cannot be sold as good news for next year; we must see a real increase in those budgets.

And with those few questions, for the time being, I will leave it there.