Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 3:33 pm on 26 November 2019.
Thank you for the comments. They say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. So, the fact that I recognised so many words included in your statement is testimony that that is true. I recognise that there is a lot of common ground here. Just to address two specific points that you made—you talked about in the economic action plan that we identified four foundation sectors, and you said that was too narrow, and I think, as I mentioned in my statement, the fact that we've now gone beyond that and taken a sector-neutral approach, so we're no longer restricted to just four, and that the enabling plan on the foundational economy we committed to in the EAP will not be restricted to just the four and we'll take a broader view, reflects the fact that our thinking has moved on.
On the point about tenders being of a manageable size, I entirely agree, and that's the work Rebecca Evans, as finance Minister, is doing about reforming procurement to open it up, and to upskill the profession, to being able to offer tenders that encompass small firms. One of the projects we are funding through the challenge fund is with Swansea Council. It's a very modest scheme, but it is to design and specify contracts from the council to maximise opportunities for small businesses to bid for work—for example, construction-based contracts. There's a similar bid from the housing association in west Wales, Pobl, to open up its work for one-person traders and odd-job people, as part of the experimental fund too. So, we've been monitoring those two closely, and the whole point of the experimental fund is that we're trying these different things, and if they work, we'll be demanding of the public services boards to adopt or justify. Now, clearly, we're not saying everything's going to work everywhere—you can't lift and shift something that works in one area automatically into another. But I think we will be turning that on its head, and saying to local authorities, 'It works here—you need to give us a good reason why it won't work with you, or we expect you to adopt that good practice.'