Part of 5. Topical Questions – in the Senedd at 3:02 pm on 8 July 2020.
Can I thank Suzy Davies for her questions? I'll first of all deal with the accessibility question. Any suggestion that the M4 decision influenced Ineos is nothing more than nonsense on stilts. The fact of the matter is that the M4 decision was made in the summer of 2019, and the Ineos deal was secured in the autumn of 2019. In four years of negotiations with the company, not on one occasion was the M4 raised. It's about as credible a claim as the claim that the UK Government's failure and refusal to electrify the south Wales mainline may have influenced Ineos's decision. The fact of the matter is that a site became available in France very late last week, and in a very, very short space of time, the business decided to go to France, rather than remain in Wales. We will be seeking to recoup the £4 million that has been spent to date. There is the slightest chance that it could still come to Wales, but that would require the deal in France to fall through. But we will go on working to ensure that as many job opportunities come to Bridgend and the surrounding communities as possible.