Part of 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 1:39 pm on 31 January 2023.
Diolch, Trefnydd. Thank you. A popular independent cafe, called Marmajo's, had premises on Pen-y-fan industrial estate in Crumlin until it very recently closed, and the owner, Charlie Allcock, reluctantly made a really hard decision, after watching her energy bills triple, to almost £1,800 a month. Also, in Pontllanfraith, the Islwyn bowls club reopened following the pandemic restrictions, but the bar and function room have also remained closed as the local authority seeks someone to take it over, and the commercial side of the club needs to be secured in the future. And in Blackwood, HSBC have announced their intention to close their branch in July this year. So, in communities throughout Islwyn, the consequences of 13 long, cold years of Tory austerity and the pandemic, and now the Tory cost-of-living crisis, are removing or endangering the important fabric of community life. Trefnydd, the people of Islwyn are grateful for their Welsh Labour Government that seeks, within its devolved functions and within its strict financial envelope, to encourage economic activity. One such area of Welsh Government activity has been in the creative arts. Executives of Netflix last week told the Welsh Affairs Select Committee that their shows, such as Sex Education, which saw filming in Newbridge town centre and across Gwent, contributed £200 million to the Welsh economy over the last five years. What other imaginative avenues, Trefnydd, are open to the Welsh Government to seek to bring life and energy into Islwyn's economic life?