Part of 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 1:55 pm on 14 February 2023.
The Member clearly didn't hear what I said. Levelling-up in Wales means a £1.1 billion loss in unreplaced EU funds—a Welsh budget cut in real terms. It's also an assault on the devolution settlement, which might have passed him by. I think having deeply flawed UK Government programmes foisted on us is not something to celebrate at all. They'll have a very limited impact. They'll probably be poor value for money as well. I think many excellent bids were put forward, but unfortunately missed out because UK Ministers in London just picked winners and losers and made decisions on local projects here in Wales.