5. What assessment has the Welsh Government made of the impact the COVID-19 pandemic is having upon businesses in South Wales West? OQ55827

Well, the Welsh Government is working with local authorities in South Wales West to deal with the immediate impact as well as plan for the recovery. Our regional teams are on standby to offer support to businesses and our Business Wales service also continues to provide support and advice to those who need it.

Thank you, Minister. The pandemic has decimated the economy of my region, and while the virus can destroy lives, the measures to control it have destroyed livelihoods, and far too many of my constituents have lost their jobs and lost their businesses. I welcome the support given by both the UK and the Welsh Government. However, it has far too often fallen short of what is needed.

One of my constituents contacted me, dismayed by the economic resilience fund phase 3 business development grants process. The company spent days preparing a business plan to accompany their application, only to find that applications had closed early. They believe—and I agree with them—that applications should be processed on merit and not who got there first. So, Minister, will you please consider adopting this approach?

Can I thank Caroline Jones for the question and the opportunity that it's given me to assure all businesses, across Wales, that all of those applications for development grant funding will be assessed on a qualitative basis, on merit, and that we will not be awarding money simply on the basis of first come, first served, but on the quality of the applications? That's why we're already rejecting a number of applications, because they were not of sufficient quality or they were not accompanied by the necessary documentation that was outlined in the criteria pages of Business Wales.

I can say that in response to the economic crisis—and this has been unprecedented—in Swansea alone more than 8,500 awards have already been made to businesses through our £1.7 billion package of support, the most generous package of support anywhere in the United Kingdom. Crucially, in regard to a point that was raised by Russell George, the majority of those awards are going to micro and SME businesses that are right at the heart of our communities and local economies. So, our intervention has been unprecedented. It's been aligned and designed to complement the UK Government's furlough and self-employment support schemes. And, of course, as we look to the future round of ERF phase 4, we will be learning from each of the first three phases, as well as from the other funds that have been operated by my colleagues.

Minister, you've answered many questions on hospitality in north Wales and elsewhere, but I'd like to remind people that hospitality exists throughout Wales, and particularly in my constituency, which serves the visitor economy very much, and especially the fantastic mountain bike trails that are in the Afan valley. Businesses such as the Afan Lodge, which cater for those visitors, have seen a dramatic reduction in their business as a result of local restrictions here in Wales, and then the national lockdown here in Wales, but now the national lockdown in England as well. They are struggling as a consequence of these restrictions, and businesses as such are going to have a difficult time over the winter months. The extension of the furlough scheme came too late for them, unfortunately, because by the time the extension was given we were halfway through our own firebreak. What can the Welsh Government do to ensure that these businesses, which were very profitable before the pandemic, can remain in operation and survive the winter to be strong enough to resume operation next year?

Well, can I thank Dai Rees for his question and recognise the value of the visitor economy to his constituency? It is very significant indeed. Right across Wales, the number of jobs that are secured within the tourism and hospitality sectors is hugely important and provides opportunities for communities to thrive. Therefore, during the period of the firebreak, we were concerned with the viability of businesses and that's why we made available £300 million of support, crucially including that £200 million of lockdown business grant support. And I can inform the Member that within Neath Port Talbot more than 1,000 awards have already been made as part of the lockdown business fund to businesses in his constituency, and that has secured 3,750 jobs—many, many of which are within the tourism and hospitality sectors.