3. Statement by the Deputy Minister for Social Partnership: The Social Partnership and Public Procurement (Wales) Bill

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 3:01 pm on 7 June 2022.

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Photo of Mike Hedges Mike Hedges Labour 3:01, 7 June 2022

I very much welcome the statement from the Minister. Procurement is one of the most powerful tools the Welsh Government has got in order to decide the type of Wales we're going to have. There is a very large procurement programme, not just by the Welsh Government, but by the whole of the Welsh Government-funded public sector, including health and local government. I, like many Members here, am massively opposed to the use of fire and rehire, exploitative contracts, and paying less than the real living wage. Will the Welsh Government use procurement to rule out companies that use fire and rehire, pay less than the real living wage, and use exploitative contracts from all Welsh Government and Welsh Government-funded bodies' contracts, and also, more importantly, the subcontracts? No-one who is getting a penny of money from the Welsh taxpayer should be running companies that are exploiting the workers who are doing the work for them.