6. Statement by the Minister for Economy: Qatar 2022

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 4:10 pm on 27 September 2022.

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Photo of Vaughan Gething Vaughan Gething Labour 4:10, 27 September 2022

Thank you for the series of questions. In terms of the metrics that we'll use, I will share some of the information that we're going to be using to judge, but also we're going to have an evaluation on the impact as well, and I'll be very keen to share that—not just in the Senedd; it may be the sort of thing that I would expect the relevant subject committee would be very interested in. And there's a choice there about the two committees that may have an interest, because there's a significant economic impact as well as the broader challenges for the committee that Delyth Jewell chairs on arts, culture and that end as well.

So, we have this challenge of setting out what we want to do in terms of the number of people who will have a greater awareness of Wales and what's on offer here, both within this country and also in trading and other relationships further afield, and that's why we're particularly interested in the focus on target markets. It's fortuitous in many ways, but not entirely fortuitous, that we have had an event with the wrestling—that's a huge market in America, and if we'd had to pay for that it would have cost us a huge amount of money to get that sort of focus and attention. We now have the first game in the world cup with the Welsh diaspora there as well, and with two envoys there who are working very hard with us on their own links to promote Wales, too. And then what I'm really positive about is in terms of our ability to capitalise on the legacy in the immediate and longer term aftermath. So I'll be more than happy to provide more information in a way that is useful for Senedd Members to be aware of and, indeed, to scrutinise, but I don't think it will be as simple as one set of measures within a week because, as I say, there'll be the evaluations to look at as well.

On the speed of the applications and decisions made, there is always a balance here, is there not? We qualified when we did, so we couldn't really plan and deliver an application process before then. We then had a number of particular shocks and difficulties, then finding a budget, then needing to advertise it and then needing to make choices. And part of the challenge in making those choices is that we need to give organisations enough time to actually put a bid in, to actually look at it, to score it and to scrutinise it and then to be able to announce it, so that the organisations have the opportunity to plan and deliver their activity. And I simply don't accept the Member's contention that this is all about Cardiff-based organisations. The Boys' and Girls' Clubs of Wales, for example, have a footprint across the country. If you think about the Urdd, they may have an office literally over the way from here, but they're very much an all-Wales organisation and they're running a project that will go into every single primary school in Wales. So, there are many, many all-Wales projects, and actually, if you look at the geographic focus, and where there is only one particular geography where it's based, it's actually Wrexham that does better than other parts of Wales, because of the football museum and the work that is going to be done there, and a particular festival that's going to take place in Wrexham as well. The great majority of what we are supporting is all-Wales, and some specific activity within North America as well, which, as I say, is a big market for us.

I think when it comes to the broader legacy, not just in physical activity and the investment in facilities that is needed—because the event in itself won't guarantee that, in 10 years' time, Wales will be a fitter and healthier nation, but it is a potential springboard with investment in the community game, improving facilities for more people to be able to take part in physical activities—that is part of our change and shift in the culture of us as a nation. There's quite a lot of culture change that we need to see to renormalise ways of doing things, whether it's moving, getting to places, and indeed enjoying sport through all ages and all abilities as well.

I'll finally turn to your final point, and indeed your starting point. The starting point was about the impact of our fans as ambassadors, and the Red Wall have been huge ambassadors for Wales. I'm old enough—you may not be, but I'm old enough, even as a middle-aged man—to remember when football fans following the national team weren't always the credit that they are near universally recognised to be now. It wasn't always the case that Wales fans would be decent to each other, never mind the places they visited. There were too many examples of behaviour that we would not be proud of, and actually, for a long period of time now, our fans have been amazing ambassadors, not just for the team but for the country, and I know that having met other businesses, having met other ambassadors for other countries, and, actually, some of the ambassadorial team in the region, who recognise that, actually, from their previous postings, when Wales have played games in the more recent past, there has been a really positive legacy left by those fans, and I'm really proud of that. I saw it myself in 2016 at the Euros in Bordeaux, where Welsh fans were sitting down, drinking and eating before the game with Slovenian fans, and there wasn't a hint of trouble. And I'm afraid that, with our friends across the border, there are many fans who fit exactly into that mould—who are real, genuine fans, who want to take their family to enjoy the game—but, unfortunately, they still have a larger problem than we do in the behaviour of some of their fans. It's a real strength of ours that we really need to keep hold of—the unifying message of the team and the fan behaviour.

That brings me to The Barry Horns, because I think you need to be able to disconnect a Twitter account from somebody who has a particular view, which people are entitled to in a democratic country—and, let's be clear, the person who runs that Twitter account isn't a supporter of me and my party either, and I don't have a problem with that. But the band itself is very much part of what takes place around the game, and, if you've been to a number of games, then you know that The Barry Horns, within the fan base, are something that people actually like and enjoy about the atmosphere that's created, and that's what we're looking to promote. So, it's not an endorsement of individual views of individual members in or around the band itself; it is about what the band does as a really positive projection and extension of the Red Wall. And when they're part of team Wales and the Red Wall, I think all of us can see something to be proud of and that adds to the atmosphere and the environment. We'll carry on having our differences on other matters in public life, but I am comfortable with our decision to support The Barry Horns and their engagement with the wider Red Wall in Qatar.