Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 3:04 pm on 20 May 2020.
Well, I would agree entirely with Huw Irranca-Davies that there is an incredible opportunity to do as Andy Burnham has said, to build back better—he coined the phrase. I think it's entirely appropriate in terms of describing some of the ways that Welsh Government has been operating in recent times, including through the economic contract, how we've been promoting responsible business, including some of the groundbreaking legislation that we have here in Wales, including the active travel Act and the well-being of future generations Act. I was able, during the course of the discussion that I had with Mayor Burnham, to highlight some of the unique ways of working in Wales that will enable us to build back better and which, if followed by other Governments, will enable the whole country to build back better as well.
I think some of the exciting work that can be taken forward to ensure that we create a greener, fairer society and a greener, fairer economy includes the work that has been commenced on working smarter, and this ties in with Russell George's question that I didn't have an opportunity to answer in terms of how we might be able to support town centres and high streets. It's our view that behaviours will never revert to how they were in February of this year, and that, once we're through this crisis, behavioural change will lead to more remote working. We need to embrace that, and we could support a wide take-up of remote working if we were to invest in redundant shops in town centres on high streets, offering opportunities for people not necessarily to work from home, but certainly to work closer to home. This could be a great leveller as well for the Welsh economy. It would mean that people wouldn't have to necessarily travel tens upon tens of miles to the larger towns and cities of our country to attend meetings. It would enable town centres to feel more vibrant for us to be able to invest in some of the infrastructure that would also enhance town centres and high streets, including wider pavements, active travel infrastructure.
And I think also, in terms of some of the work that we're looking at doing on the Wales transport strategy, as we build back better, we will of course be investing in more active travel provision, including greener transport solutions. And in terms of some of the ethical employment procedures that we're keen to promote, Huw Irranca-Davies will be aware that we recently announced that we won't be providing economic resilience funding to businesses registered in tax havens. I think it's absolutely vital we do this; if you're not paying into the system, why should you be taking money out of the system ahead of those who have paid their fair share? We want Wales to be seen as a fair, green nation and I'm confident that, through the work that's being undertaken now as part of the recovery, we will be able to achieve that reputation.