Questions Without Notice from Party Spokespeople

Part of 2. Questions to the Minister for Economy – in the Senedd at 2:42 pm on 19 October 2022.

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Photo of Vaughan Gething Vaughan Gething Labour 2:42, 19 October 2022

I just want to return to the end point you made about hospitality. I'm very well aware that the summer has been reasonable but not bumper. So, actually, right across hospitality, there are real challenges going into the autumn and the winter. It makes the Halloween budget even more important for them about what that does in terms of our ability to support this sector, but also more broadly the economy moving forward. There are still challenges around staffing, but consumer confidence and discretionary spend is a very real issue that directly affects the business viability. A number of hospitality businesses do make a significant amount of their profits in the period leading up to the turn of the year, but I am very well aware that a number of those businesses are really struggling in the run up to it, and a number are running on shorter hours as a direct result of a combination of all those factors. 

When it comes to steel, I met Kwasi Kwarteng when he was the Secretary of State for BEIS, as he then was, at a steel council that we hosted in Cardiff. We were, at that point, making the case for clarity from the UK Government about investment around Tata, and you'll have seen they've publicly surfaced their position, but also the perennial issue in every steel council of energy costs. Because there is a differential in the cost of energy as it's supplied to sectors in Germany and other parts of Europe too. That continues to be an ask. I have sought a meeting with both Simon Clarke and indeed with Jacob Rees-Mogg, who is the new Secretary of State for BEIS. That's yet to happen.

In the initial meeting I had with Simon Clarke about investment zones—he requested a meeting—as I said in earlier answers, we were constructive but clear in our response. I made clear, and indeed in the follow up, that steel is one of the priority areas where I think we could actually do something of real use and value and we would be keen to have a purposeful conversation about how the sector can be supported. There are significant opportunities in the steel sector in Wales and beyond, particularly when we look at opportunities in the Celtic sea, for economic activity. I want that steel to be made in the UK and not imported from other parts of the world, to make sure we get the most out of the opportunities that exist. We'll continue to make the case for both constructive engagement with Ministers and then active budget choices to allow those opportunities to be realised.