Part of 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 1:58 pm on 7 January 2020.
I thank the First Minister for that answer, and he's rightly stood very firmly on the principle of 'not a penny less, not a power lost' in respect of the shared prosperity fund. Yet, over the last year, there has been little if any real engagement by the UK Government with the Welsh Government, and little detail beyond that headline. Meanwhile, quietly but assiduously in the background, the regional investment Wales steering group, which I've got the privilege of chairing, has been scoping future funding proposals for Wales that would respect the distinct policy framework within Wales, respect the principles of devolution and subsidiarity to and beyond Cardiff Bay and this Senedd, and also respect the need to be responsive to local and regional priorities. But it also notes the need to work in a cross-border way on funding and initiatives across the UK and indeed across Europe in the future. So, the First Minister will not be surprised to hear that the steering group would welcome a much more open, transparent engagement from the newly elected UK Government, and the new Secretary of State for Wales, on the shared prosperity fund. Would he and the Brexit Minister now seek constructive and urgent engagement with the UK Government on these matters, but on the very clear terms as well of not a penny less, as was guaranteed to us, and not a power lost?