4. Statement by the Minister for Economy, Transport and North Wales: Response to Coronavirus (COVID-19)

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 4:19 pm on 22 April 2020.

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Photo of Ken Skates Ken Skates Labour 4:19, 22 April 2020

Can I thank Helen Mary Jones again for her very kind and generous comments and the questions asked? We certainly don't have a monopoly on ideas within Welsh Government. We are seeking views, ideas and innovation from far and wide, and I've got to say, we have had a lot of constructive ideas from Members across the Chamber. I'm incredibly grateful to Helen Mary for those ideas and the intelligence as well that she and her office have been able to provide during this time.

Just reflecting on the group of individuals and small businesses that are falling through the gap regarding VAT registration, my aim is to detail phase 2 of the ERF in the coming 10 days to two weeks, so that we can essentially have a seamless movement from ERF phase 1 into phase 2, recognising that the current phase, with a requirement of, or an application total of over £180 million, will not last a significant length of time beyond—[Inaudible.] So, I do not wish to have a gap between phase 1 and phase 2 if it can be avoided. And I think you're absolutely right regarding the performance of high-street banks. Memories will live very long from this experience and people will judge and then make decisions on the basis of the performance of high-street banks and others. I do think it's right that the UK Government, if it's choosing to publish, if you like, a league table for local authority performance in England, also does the same with the banks. It's only fair, in my view, that that should be applied.

In terms of furlough—the reason I raise furlough is because, Helen Mary, you've identified a group of individuals who have fallen through the crack in terms of the cut-off date. We've been supported by the Scottish Government in our call for the date to be pushed back to 1 April. That would also capture a significant number of people who are seasonal workers within the visitor economy. I have to say, the discussions that I have with Ministers in the UK Government are always very amicable, constructive, they're open to our ideas, and, indeed, they've been able to announce changes to certain support packages based on our recommendations, based on the intelligence that we've been getting. So, they're currently considering that further extension to 1 April. A quad-call took place this afternoon during Plenary; I wasn't able to be on it so my colleague Lee Waters took my place. If there is any news about a possible extension to furlough that has come back from as a consequence of that call, I'll make sure that that information is shared with Members.

I just want to pick up on the question about to what extent we should be plugging gaps left by UK Government activities. There is only so much we can do with our finite resource. The UK Government really needs to be seen as the Government that has the extraordinarily deep pockets that we do not have, but that's not to say to say that we can't intervene in a Wales-only way—that's precisely what we did with the £0.5 billion economy resilience fund. Normally we spend—through the business and regions division of Government, business support and investment—about £30 million a year, so I do think that £500 million, £0.5 billion, demonstrates the scale of what we've done. But I think, when it comes to support such as an emergency basic income scheme, that would be incredibly expensive, probably unaffordable for the Welsh Government, certainly given the commitments we've already made. Trying to find the quantum of money that would be required for that would be nigh on impossible, but it is something that we have said to the UK Government should most certainly be considered. We're looking at how we can use the discretionary assistance fund to support more people. The demand for DAF at the moment is quite incredible, so even if we were to significantly increase the amount of money that's available through the DAF, it would not replicate, it would not offer what an alternative, emergency basic income scheme would offer. That's why we've been pretty consistent and clear in saying to the UK Government, 'Look, you can introduce this emergency scheme, it can be time-limited, but it will make a massive difference to very, very vulnerable people who are currently falling through the gaps.'