1. Statement by the First Minister: Update on COVID-19

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 3:13 pm on 22 December 2021.

Alert me about debates like this

Photo of Mark Drakeford Mark Drakeford Labour 3:13, 22 December 2021

I thank Peter Fox for those points. I recognise, as I try always to do, the point he's made—the significant sums of money that the UK Government has mobilised to deal with the pandemic. The point to remember, though, is that that is to deal with all the consequences of the pandemic, not just the business impact that we are seeing, but everything we've asked the health service to do: the track and trace system, the vaccination programme, the extra measures we've had to take in the care home sector, the £24 million that my colleague the education Minister announced over and above all the extra money we've put into schools and colleges to support those young people who are facing examinations next year, and the huge effort that has gone on to house homeless people during the pandemic. We are providing millions of pounds every month to local authorities in Wales to allow them to go on doing that. That's why we have £500 million, or whatever the figure is today, left during the final quarter of this financial year, because prudent budgeting says you don't use all the money you've got on day one—you have to space that money out. And thank goodness we do have it, because that's why we've been able to announce the £120 million.

I have to say gently to the Member, because I know he's a close steward of these things, that the £270 million from the UK Government is not extra money; it's an ability to draw forward money that they've already provided to us, and if we use it now it may not be available to us in the future. That will depend upon spending decisions that are made in England, rather than spending decisions that are made in Wales. So, it's not straightforwardly extra money at all. The fact that we have husbanded our resources so that we have money still in reserve in this last quarter is absolutely what has allowed us to go ahead and make those announcements in the last couple of days for the sports sector, for the cultural sector and now for businesses more widely. We will be making further allocations, I'm absolutely sure, to help the health service to pay for the accelerated booster programme and to help others who will have needs that they have not been able to budget for because of the omicron impact in the remaining months of this financial year.