North Wales MS Mark Isherwood yesterday urged the Finance Minister to respond to struggling North Wales businesses who have condemned the Welsh Government’s lack of financial support throughout the pandemic.
In Wednesday afternoon’s meeting of the Welsh Parliament, Mr Isherwood challenged the Minister, Rebecca Evans MS, over business support in Wales, quoting a number of hospitality businesses owners in North Wales who feel they have been let down by the Welsh Government.
He said:
“Given that one of the Welsh Government's responsibilities is business development, you would expect the Welsh Government to also contribute some of its own money above the additional UK Government funding.
“Despite the First Minister's denials, a restaurant owner in North Wales, ineligible for the Welsh Government's latest funding, stated that he had ‘stabbed them in the back’. Another hospitality business e-mailed: 'I spoke to Mark Drakeford when he visited Wrexham Lager brewery. He told me there would be a re-start grant for when my pub reopens, another grant because my pub could not open due to not having outdoor space, and a further grant for operating on 17 May. I've just checked Business Wales website, only to find I'm not eligible for any grants at all'.
“He subsequently found out he may be able to apply for a grant of £2,500, which he said does not compare to England's equivalent grant of £8,000.
“Another described the Welsh Government's grant announcement as a ‘slap in the face’. Another told me ‘We were promised by Mark Drakeford that money had been set aside and would be promptly distributed as soon as Government had been voted in, but haven’t received any funding’. Another said: 'The last round of grants covered us up to the end of March. The latest grants cover from May to June. What happened to April, when we were still closed?'. Simply repeating the First Minister's claim that his Welsh Government has provided the most generous package of business support in the UK is an insult to these and the many other of these businesses who have contacted me and other Members.
“What, if anything, have you got to say to them? What are you going to do about it?”
In her response, the Minister insisted that Wales has provided “the most generous package of business support”, but added “inevitably, we're not going to be able to reach every single business.”
Speaking outside the meeting, Mr Isherwood added:
“Broken promises and sound bites are no substitute for real engagement with our hospitality sector, so that its needs and those of our local economies may be understood and met”.