Questions Without Notice from Party Spokespeople

Part of 1. Questions to the Minister for Economy, Transport and North Wales – in the Senedd at 1:40 pm on 3 March 2021.

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Photo of Helen Mary Jones Helen Mary Jones Plaid Cymru 1:40, 3 March 2021

I'm grateful to the Minister for his answers. Of course, sadly and, I suppose, inevitably, we are beginning to hear of jobs being lost to Wales. The Minister will have heard what my colleague Rhun ap Iorwerth said yesterday about the 27 jobs at Joloda Hydraroll Ltd that may be transferred out of Gaerwen and Ynys Môn. He will also be aware of the 99 manufacturing jobs at risk at the AIM Altitude aircraft cabin interiors manufacturer in Llanelli. These are obviously just examples. Can the Minister provide us today with reassurances that, while dealing with the COVID emergency response, his department still has the capacity to respond to these kinds of situations? The number of the job losses that I've mentioned today may not seem huge, but in the communities impacted they are really significant, and there are supply line issues as well.

And, looking forward, does the Minister believe that his department will be able to develop the capacity to take an intelligence-led approach in identifying, as we come out of the COVID crisis, those companies in Wales where we are at the risk of redundancies so that the next Welsh Government will be able to step in at an earlier stage and perhaps intervene to support those businesses, and to encourage them to keep work here in Wales, before they reach the crisis point, where people often feel that, although there is a consultation, decisions have already been made?