8. What assessment has the Welsh Government made of the impact of the UK Government's fiscal statement on Alyn and Deeside? OQ58609

Despite the reversals made on many elements of the mini budget, the damage has been done. Households and businesses in Alyn and Deeside and elsewhere are facing higher borrowing costs and greater economic uncertainty. We now face the prospect of more austerity in our already hard-pressed public services.

Thank you for your response, Minister. The Tory party want us all to pretend that it was a different Tory party that crashed the economy with reckless giveaways. [Interruption.] Whether they're Conservatives or Tories, they're all under the same hat. Now, they crashed the economy with their giveaways to millionaires and billionaires just a few weeks ago. Minister, you're right; the damage from the most disastrous fiscal statement is done. They then were determined to cause more uncertainty in the budgets with their so-called Halloween statement, only for it to emerge today that they'll scare us sometime towards the end of November. But in the meantime, with all this nonsense on the corridors of Westminster, with the power struggles they have, residents in Alyn and Deeside are struggling. They require certainty, Minister. Do you agree with me that the very last thing they need is the additional dose of Tory austerity coming their way?

Yes, I absolutely agree with Jack Sargeant, and I agree with his analysis as well, because we have a new administration in Westminster, but we absolutely don't have a clean slate, because the Prime Minister and the Chancellor's fingerprints are all over the economic crisis that we're all facing at the moment. And Jack Sargeant is right again; it's his constituents who are feeling the pain. They'll be feeling it through the increases in their mortgage payments, and they'll be feeling it if benefits don't rise in line with inflation. So, I think that absolutely the last thing that we need is further austerity at this time, but whether or not the UK Government is even hearing that is another thing entirely.

And finally, question 9. Joyce Watson.