Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 3:17 pm on 6 May 2020.
I'm grateful to the Minister for his answers. He's rightly said, and it's also something that the First Minister mentioned in response to questions today, that much of what will need to be done to protect and strengthen the Welsh economy can't be done by the Welsh Government alone, because the resources simply aren't there. And I wonder if the Minister can say a little bit more today about the discussions he's been having with UK Government about the support that's needed for some of our key businesses. We had the unfortunate news about General Electric going out to consultation about potentially a large number of redundancies. The steel sector, of course, continues to be a huge issue for us here in Wales in Port Talbot but also, of course, in Trostre in my own region. And I wonder if the Minister can say a little bit more about how those discussions with the UK Government are proceeding and whether he feels they fully understand.
In the statement, the Minister mentioned that there is a need for the Chancellor to learn some lessons, and he also mentioned the furlough scheme. Can the Minister confirm this afternoon that he is still in active discussions with the UK Government about wishing both to maintain the furlough scheme, as he said, during the months that come, but also looking for some flexibility? I'm thinking particularly of seasonal workers—everybody from people who might usually work in a hotel or caravan park or, indeed, as lifeguards, and whether he feels that the Chancellor is in listening mode when he's raising those concerns.