Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Covid-19: Economic Recovery

Wednesday 14 October 2020 · 3 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 1 Partly answered 2 Not answered 0

Key points

  • UK Government provided a 30 billion plan for jobs to support Wales's economic recovery from the covid-19 outbreak.
  • The Welsh Government has a degree of flexibility with the 4.4 billion Barnettised numbers to address local issues differently if evidence supports it.
  • The Minister agrees to use his good offices to ensure coordination among private sector developers, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, and the Crown Estate for projects ready to go.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Joy Morrissey Con Beaconsfield
Economy Wales
Context

The MP inquires about steps being taken to support Wales's economic recovery post-COVID.

Question

What steps is his Department taking to support Wales's economic recovery from the covid-19 outbreak?

Answer from Simon Hart

The UK Government have provided a support package for Welsh businesses and communities in recent weeks, including the Government's £30 billion plan for jobs. Our ambition remains to secure jobs, stimulate growth and provide opportunities to level up Wales.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Specific measures not detailed beyond general statement.

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Q2 Joy Morrissey Con Beaconsfield
Economy Wales
Context

The MP inquires about financial support plans for industries hit by additional restrictions imposed beyond UK government measures.

Question

Does he agree that, if the Welsh Government want to trigger further restrictions and go beyond Government measures, they need to provide plans for how they will financially support the industries that will be hit as a result?

Answer from Simon Hart

My hon. Friend makes a very good point. The Barnettised numbers, which total £4.4 billion so far, do give the Welsh Government a degree of flexibility in addressing issues if the evidence supports doing it in a slightly different way. There are one or two examples of where they have introduced their own interventions, courtesy of money provided by UK taxpayers, but the overriding point is that there does need to be a degree of collaboration and co-operation that straddles all the countries of the UK, because this is an international and a national challenge.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Specific financial support plans not detailed beyond general agreement.

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Q3 Stephen Crabb Con
Wales Energy Business & Trade
Context

The MP asks about using good offices to ensure timely decisions for floating offshore wind projects.

Question

May I ask him if he would use his good offices to ensure that all the relevant players in this—the private sector developers that have projects ready to go, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and the Crown Estate, which owns the seabed—are all on the same page, working towards a shared goal so that we get decisions made in a timely way?

Answer from Simon Hart

Absolutely. I agree with my right hon. Friend and neighbour's assessment of the situation. We were all encouraged by my hon. Friend the Under-Secretary's comments just now in that respect. I can, I hope, encourage my right hon. Friend by saying that I am meeting the Crown Estate the day after tomorrow, I think, to discuss the potential delays, which at the moment look like being its problem, and we need to unblock that.

Answered
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