Part of 1. Questions to the Minister for Economy, Transport and North Wales – in the Senedd at 1:31 pm on 27 January 2021.
Can I thank Caroline Jones for her question? I'm always willing to meet with businesses and with representative bodies. Of course, if a formal invitation is made, we'll give it very, very sympathetic consideration. In relation to the issue, though—to gaming and gambling—the guidance that is used by local authorities clearly states, in relation to those venues, arcades of the type that could be classified as amusements rather than gambling premises are considered leisure establishments and are eligible for the grants, either via the small business rate relief route, or where the rateable value of the premises makes them eligible for the larger £5,000 as leisure facilities. But as I've already said on numerous occasions during the course of this pandemic, very difficult decisions have had to be made, and, in so doing, we are still offering the most generous package of support anywhere in the United Kingdom to protect jobs. To date, we've been able to protect more than 140,000 jobs across Wales as a result of our direct action.