11. Short Debate: Horse-racing: An economic and sporting asset for Wales

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 6:09 pm on 16 November 2022.

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Photo of Llyr Gruffydd Llyr Gruffydd Plaid Cymru 6:09, 16 November 2022

Now, it would be remiss of me not to highlight in this speech today the support that the Welsh Government has provided, of course, to the Welsh racing industry during the period of the pandemic. The shutdown of racing for a number of months, and then continued restrictions on crowd numbers, of course, that continued intermittently here in Wales afterwards, all of that put considerable financial strain on the industry, with Welsh tracks, of course, collectively sustaining significant losses, and many of you will be aware that two successive or consecutive Welsh Grand Nationals—our premier race of the year, held at Chepstow—having to be run, of course, behind closed doors. Now, fortunately, the survival of many small and medium-sized businesses within the Welsh racing sector was secured by £1.7 million in grant funding given by the Welsh Government to the industry, on top of other funding streams, of course, such as furlough and relief from business rates. The UK Government clearly played its part in that respect as well, and I know that many across the Welsh horse-racing industry are extremely grateful for the support that they received during what was a very difficult time.