Part of 1. Questions to the Minister for Economy – in the Senedd at 1:56 pm on 23 March 2022.
Minister, generation after generation in Rhondda have been let down by consecutive Tory Westminster Governments. Time and time again, we have lost employment as a direct result of their decisions. Our forefathers lost their industry. More recently, we've lost the tax office, the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency jobs, Department for Work and Pensions offices and the local courts. We've lost police on our streets, among other public sector jobs, thanks to Tory austerity, and now Boris wants to shortchange Wales by £1 billion. If it wasn't for Welsh Government's investment in support of companies like E-Cycle and Flowtech, local businesses in our town centres in Treorchy and Ferndale, and initiatives like the Big Shed in Tonypandy, the remote working hub in Porth and the Court House in Llwynypia, we would see much higher unemployment figures in Rhondda. How will the employability and skills plan build on the success we are beginning to see in Rhondda, so we don't have to get out to get on?