Unleashing Wales’s economic potential

Many businesses in Wales already punch above their weight globally. But the Welsh economy is also bursting with untapped potential.

Our economic plan will unlock that potential – growing and sustaining Welsh-owned businesses, delivering good jobs, reviving our town centres and boosting living standards.

Through a new, business-led National Development Agency for Wales, we will help Welsh businesses to secure investment, trade and innovate. We will ensure that more of our successful businesses stay Welsh owned – providing sustainable and well-paid jobs in our communities and reinvesting in local supply chains over the longer term.

We will reform business rates to level the playing field for businesses on our high streets, and redress the existing imbalance that advantages out-of-town shopping over hospitality, leisure and retail in our town centres.

And by developing a Welsh skills system that is fit for the future, we will ensure that everyone has the skills they need to get ahead. We will make sure that education and training opportunities are aligned with the real needs of Welsh employers and industries, and reflect future opportunities in the Welsh economy.

Actions in the first 100 days:

Economy

  • Establish a panel of business and economic experts to refine the remit, governance, and operating model for a new National Development Agency
  • Set up a town centres taskforce to explore the options for reformed business rates that better support high street regeneration, alongside other policy changes that will support our town centres – including reforms to the planning system to streamline the process of converting commercial to residential
  • Establish a new Economic and Fiscal Commission to support the collection and analysis of Welsh economic data, and the setting of clear targets on the economy

Energy

  • Prioritise finalising a National Energy Strategy that will include:
    • A Renewable Energy Sector Deal – building new partnerships between government, industry, communities, further and higher education, and social partners
    • Targets on generation by technology
    • Greater support for community owned energy projects
    • Reforms to the planning system that will set firmer deadlines for responses to planning applications
  • Bring forward plans to develop Trydan Gwyrdd Cymru into a single, consolidated energy company owned by the people of Wales for the people of Wales, and with a clear remit to help reduce energy bills over the medium to long term

Skills

  • Launch a Wales wide skills audit to identify future skills needs in the Welsh economy and inform our policy decisions
  • Prepare to convene a Future Skills Summit – to include representatives of the FE/HE sector, businesses and other relevant stakeholders to create one vision and strategy for the future of our skills system and its funding

Community wealth

  • Develop a Community Right to Buy Bill for introduction in the Senedd

Transport

  • Begin negotiations with the UK Government on consequentials from HS2 and other England-only rail projects, a fairer share of overall UK rail funding, and a pathway to devolving rail in full
  • Work with Transport for Wales on progressing full integration of our transport network – including on smart ticketing, fairer fares and fair capping
  • Prepare to launch an express coach service linking the north and the south of Wales as the first step in improving North-South transport links