, Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session with the Minister for Culture, Skills and Social Partnership
I think there's a huge context around all of those points, isn't there?
, Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session with the Minister for Culture, Skills and Social Partnership
I think I’ve already set out that we’re moving in the right direction, because we recognise the importance of the sector to Wales. We want to be able to support the sector in a way where we can offer more funding. This budget is the opportunity to start that…
, Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session with the Minister for Culture, Skills and Social Partnership
Look, it’s pointing in the right direction, isn’t it? This is a budget, for the first time, focused on the First Minister’s priorities—significant increases to support the NHS and all of the other priorities—yet we still have an opportunity to increase the…
, Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session with the Minister for Culture, Skills and Social Partnership
Well, we are increasing arts funding, Chair.
, Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session with the Minister for Culture, Skills and Social Partnership
Well, so have we.
, Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session with the Minister for Culture, Skills and Social Partnership
So, I think that if we were in the same space as Ireland—
, Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session with the Minister for Culture, Skills and Social Partnership
Well, we do take the arts seriously. The budgets of the Irish Government and the surplus in the budget of the Irish Government enables them to be able to do that.
, Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session with the Minister for Culture, Skills and Social Partnership
In the next budget, but we have responded in-year, and I think that that is important to recognise, because that has made a real difference to the sector, and the sector is very grateful for that, certainly in the conversations that I’ve had with those…
, Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session with the Minister for Culture, Skills and Social Partnership
So, we’ve responded more than that, haven’t we? We've responded in-year.
, Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session with the Minister for Culture, Skills and Social Partnership
No. I think I've said it's a step in the right direction.
, Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session with the Minister for Culture, Skills and Social Partnership
We have funded, haven't we—an in-year fund of £3.6 million for the Arts Council of Wales, and resilience. Blackwood Miners', again, is saved because of that. So, with the recognition of the challenges that are there, we have gone on to work with the arts…
, Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session with the Minister for Culture, Skills and Social Partnership
I've listened to the sector myself, and we will go on to support the sector in that way. That's where I am on that point, Chair.
, Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session with the Minister for Culture, Skills and Social Partnership
I don't think that I've said that they throw around comments. They have their view and they've aired that view. I don't think it is a crisis. I think there are real challenges in the system. I've listened to—
, Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session with the Minister for Culture, Skills and Social Partnership
My view is that there are challenges, aren't there? And if they describe them as that—. I don't sign up to that description, but that is for them to describe in that way. We're all aware of the challenges, and I think I've been, since taking this post in…
, Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session with the Minister for Culture, Skills and Social Partnership
The arts council will have their own views, and I'm not going to answer for the arts council.
, Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session with the Minister for Culture, Skills and Social Partnership
So, I wouldn’t describe it myself as a crisis. I think there are challenges within the sector, and I think the committee is well aware of some of those challenges within the sector. I wouldn’t describe it as a crisis myself. I think, no doubt, in that context…
, Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session with the Minister for Culture, Skills and Social Partnership
No, I think we will work—. I’m confident that we’ll have the detail in front of us, and we’ll have that in enough time to have those conversations with colleagues. I’m not too concerned at this moment around that.
, Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session with the Minister for Culture, Skills and Social Partnership
Well, we’ll work out that detail, won’t we. I think we will be—
, Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session with the Minister for Culture, Skills and Social Partnership
I'm content to do that, Chair.
, Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session with the Minister for Culture, Skills and Social Partnership
So, I think the devil is still in the detail there, and we’re still working with Treasury colleagues to understand exactly the detail around that. But, as I say, as soon as we know that, I’ll continue those discussions with the likes of the Arts Council of…
, Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session with the Minister for Culture, Skills and Social Partnership
Diolch, Heledd. So, as you know, this is a non-devolved issue, and the UK Government has confirmed that it will provide the funding for public sector employees to cover the increased costs of the national insurance. I just think it’s worth setting out the…
, Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session with the Minister for Culture, Skills and Social Partnership
—to focus and make sure the sector is successful. This is the first step in that, alongside all of the additional money we gave in-year this year.
, Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session with the Minister for Culture, Skills and Social Partnership
So, the First Minister has four priorities, and those priorities are the people of Wales. So, the NHS is the absolute No. 1 priority for the Welsh Government, and the investment in this budget is quite clearly very heavily on there. The other priorities of…
, Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session with the Minister for Culture, Skills and Social Partnership
I would like to think, Chair, that the way in which we've set out in this budget—the first opportunity that we had since the general election—increased funding should give hope to the sector and it should give optimism to the sector. I'm keen for that to…
, Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session with the Minister for Culture, Skills and Social Partnership
Well, I would like to hope—
