Part of 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 1:32 pm on 2 February 2021.
Llywydd, I thank Suzy Davies for those further questions, and in case I don't have a further opportunity to say it, shall I say to her she will be much missed in this Chamber? And her question today is typically constructive in wishing to find answers for a sector that has had a torrid time during coronavirus. If the Welsh Government receives money in the Chancellor's statement in March that funds us to offer a further business rate relief period in the next financial year, then we will definitely look to do that. But our ability to do it, the scale of funding that is required, means that can only be done if that is a genuine, across UK effort.
As far as co-ordinating dates for reopening are concerned, I hear what the Member has said. I'm pleased to say that we now have regular meetings with the UK Government every Wednesday—and a number of days in between most weeks now—where we are able to talk about common approaches to things that happen in all parts of the United Kingdom. We will all, nonetheless, be calibrating the decisions that we make in the circumstances that we face. As Suzy Davies will know, the number of people falling ill with coronavirus per 100,000 of the population in Wales is falling at the moment every day. It's about half the level that is to be seen across the border in England. I wouldn't want to deny Welsh businesses or outdoor attractions the chance of opening earlier if our circumstances allowed that to happen, but the situation, Llywydd, as Members will know, is highly uncertain. Everyone here will have seen the news overnight about the South African variant and developments in England. At the moment, in Wales, we are progressing in a positive direction. All of us are vulnerable to that changing, and that would inevitably have an impact on our ability to reopen parts of the economy.