5. What consideration did the Welsh Government give to business support in Wales when drafting its 2021-22 budget? OQ56627

Our package of business support is the most generous available anywhere in the UK, and we have provided more in business support than we've received from the UK Government in respect of support in England. I have earmarked up to £200 million of additional business support in 2021-22 to respond to the evolving changes of the pandemic.

Thank you. Given that one of the Welsh Government's responsibilities is business development, you would expect the Welsh Government to also contribute some of its own money above the additional UK Government funding. Despite the First Minister's denials, a restaurant owner in north Wales ineligible for the Welsh Government's latest funding stated that he had stabbed them in the back. Another hospitality business e-mailed: 'I spoke to Mark Drakeford when he visited Wrexham Lager brewery. He told me there would be a restart grant for when my pub reopens, another grant because my pub could not open due to not having outdoor space, and a further grant for operating on 17 May. I've just checked Business Wales' website only to find I'm not eligible for any grants at all'. He subsequently found out he may be able to apply for a grant of £2,500, which he said does not compare to England's equivalent grant of £8,000. 

Another described the Welsh Government's grant announcement as a slap in the face. Another told me: 'We were promised by Mark Drakeford that money had been set aside and would be promptly distributed as soon as Government had been voted in, but haven't received any funding. Another said: 'The last round of grants covered us up to the end of March. The latest grants cover from May to June. What happened to April when we were still closed?' Simply repeating the First Minister's claim that Welsh Government has provided the most generous package of business support in the UK is an insult to these and the many other of these businesses who have contacted me and other Members. What, if anything, have you got to say to them? What are you going to do about it?  

I have to say to Mark Isherwood it's more than a claim—it's a fact. Welsh Government has provided the most generous package of business support, and businesses in north Wales have received over £475 million of support through the economic resilience fund since that was put in place in April 2020. And the support that we've given to the tourism industry in Wales is the most generous in the UK, and that's because of the bespoke arrangements that we have put in place. Now, inevitably, we're not going to be able to reach every single business. However, I can't respond to nameless businesses that you've described in the Chamber without knowing all of the facts. But Welsh Government has recently published a link to all of the support that businesses have received in Wales, and I think that colleagues will find that quite instructive and positive, in terms of being able to look at the businesses in their own communities and constituencies that have received Welsh Government funding. So, as I say, Welsh Government has provided the most generous package of business support. It's designed to complement the UK Government's support through the furlough scheme, and we're very keen that the furlough scheme is extended for as long as it's needed, rather than coming to an end in short order.