Questions Without Notice from the Party Leaders

Part of 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 2:02 pm on 20 October 2020.

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Photo of Paul Davies Paul Davies Conservative 2:02, 20 October 2020

Well, First Minister, I've already told you the data that your Government should be publishing—you should be publishing data on a community-to-community basis in all parts of Wales, you should be publishing data on a transmission basis, you should be publishing data on a demographic basis. That information is not available—it's not being made available by your Government, and it is being made available by other Governments across the United Kingdom.

On your point about constituents contacting us as Members, I can tell you I've had many constituents contact me very concerned about the temporary national lockdown that you intend to impose. A second national lockdown could have a huge impact on the sustainability of businesses right across Wales, and could be devastating for businesses in west Wales, in mid Wales, and some parts of north Wales.

Now, the Welsh Government has announced a package of support to cover some businesses over the 17 days of a Wales-wide lockdown, but there really needs to be more detail by way of how the Welsh Government will protect the sustainability of businesses for the future, particularly if the Welsh Government is considering further lockdowns, as suggested by you yesterday in a tv interview. The Welsh Retail Consortium has said that, and I quote:

'This revenue-crushing firebreaker alone will put thousands of jobs and hundreds of shops at risk—but if it extends into November it could be a disaster for high streets across Wales.'

Unquote. Therefore, can you tell us where the £300 million enhanced economic resilience fund support will come from within your current budgets? And can you confirm that the Welsh Government has undertaken an economic assessment of the costs incurred, as well as the number of jobs that may be lost as a result of a Wales-wide lockdown, and that, as a result, the Welsh Government is fully prepared to reimburse businesses who are directly affected by the latest announcement?