9. Debate: The Second Supplementary Budget 2019-20

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 5:51 pm on 3 March 2020.

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Photo of Nick Ramsay Nick Ramsay Conservative 5:51, 3 March 2020

As a member of the Finance Committee and speaking with one voice, yes, I do agree with you on that, Mike Hedges, and I think that whenever there's a large infrastructure—. Well, the way the Barnett formula works, whenever there's a large infrastructure project going on on a UK level that benefits one area, like Crossrail, for instance, benefits London, then I think that there's a natural justice argument for Wales to get some sort of funding, whether that's through Barnett or not. So, I agree with you. 

Secondly, the Chair mentioned reserves and contingencies. It was a bit like Yes Minister in the committee when we were trying to get the answer from some of the officials about what the difference was. I can see the Minister laughing, but I wasn't referring to this Minister, by the way. When is a reserve a reserve and when is it a contingency? At the end of the day, I think we, all of us, would like far more clarity on exactly the level of contingency that is required in any given situation. I was speaking earlier about the growing financial powers of this place, and I think that we will need, going forward, a little bit more clarity on those areas. But I think it was a very good report that the Finance Committee looked at, and I'm pleased to be a part of that, and hopefully the Minister will take on board our concerns about the supplementary budget. 

We will be abstaining on the budget, by the way, on this side of the Chamber, due to our not supporting the original budget, but there are other good aspects in there.