Part of 1. Questions to the Minister for Economy – in the Senedd at 2:13 pm on 3 November 2021.
Well, the reason why there is so much chuntering from the Conservative seats in this place is because the Member correctly identifies the pork-barrel politics that went through announcements in the Chancellor's statement. And you only need to look at the facts. It is a fact that the £375 million Wales would otherwise have got has not been delivered, despite repeated promises it would be. Conservative Members here want to stand up for the UK Government and not stand up for Wales. There are huge sums of money that have been denied to Wales. And actually, when you look at the forecast for the shared prosperity funds that have been given, it says, next year, there'll be £400 million across the UK. If Wales was in the European Union and still had access to those funds, it would be £375 million just for Wales alone. We have been misled, we have been short changed, and the Tories need to decide will you stand up for Wales or are you simply here to try and defend the indefensible from the UK Government.