Part of 3. Topical Questions – in the Senedd at 3:14 pm on 9 October 2019.
Minister, another week, another announcement of hundreds of job losses in the south-east. It was only last month that we were discussing the closure of Orb steelworks in Newport, and, in June, we discussed the closure of Quinn Radiators. Today, with the closure of Triumph Furniture, that brings the total job loss number over just these four months to 912, just from three closures. That isn't normal, Minister, and it shouldn't be happening. I am yet to hear any sort of definitive explanation from the Welsh Government about the common causes behind all of these closures. I know you've spoken today about some of the reasons why you think this company has folded, but it would be good to hear your analysis of the common causes behind all of these closures. In any case, this obviously can't go on.
I was also glad to hear on this occasion that immediate action was taken by the Welsh Government and the UK Government to support the Triumph workers, and I would urge all affected workers to make use of the support that's available to them. But the Welsh Government must now pull out all the stops to prevent further job losses happening as the Christmas period nears, and to put in place an action plan for the south-east industrial economy. Minister, will you therefore commit today to convening an emergency economic summit to analyse what's going wrong with the Welsh Government's industrial strategy, and to identify potential economic weak points so that you can take action to defend workers and to prevent further loss of skills from the south-east economy?