North Wales MS and Shadow Minister for Social Justice, Mark Isherwood, challenged the Welsh Government yesterday over the action it is taking to help people through the cost of living crisis.
Responding in the Chamber to the Statement by the Minister for Social Justice and Chief Whip on ‘Cost of Living’, Mr Isherwood explained why the pandemic, quickly followed by the War in Ukraine, resulted in households across the world feeling the Cost-of-Living crisis. He stated that “the UK Government had almost eliminated the deficit when COVID-19 hit” and that “Without this, the UK would have struggled to raise the £300 billion borrowed to see us through the pandemic, which, for example, saw the UK Government pay the wages of around a third of the workforce, and spend billions supporting businesses and households”.
He referred to the fact that the UK Government cost-of-living support in 2023-24 is worth £26 billion, in addition to Benefits uprating, including the State Pension, being increased by 10.1 per cent, in line with September inflation, and challenged the Minister over the support the Welsh Government is providing.
He also said that rising prices have “hit people in Wales particularly hard because 24 years of Labour Welsh Government have left Wales with, according to official statistics, the lowest growth in prosperity per head out of the UK Nations since 1999, the lowest pay packets in the UK, and the lowest employment of all 12 UK Nations and Regions.”
Speaking in the Senedd Chamber, he said:
“Questioning you here in January, following the Welsh Government's announcement that it was not continuing the Winter Fuel Scheme beyond 2022-23, I asked you whether this would be scrapped entirely, replaced by the original £100 payment, or replaced by something else. I'd be grateful if you could answer this now.
“Further, questioning you here last week, I noted your confirmation to my Office that although the Welsh Government had made up to £90 million available for payments to eligible low-income households under the 2022-23 Winter Fuel Support Scheme, less than £65 million had been spent on this by 28th February this year, when applications closed. I asked you whether this underspend would therefore be carried forward, and if not, why not. I'd be grateful if you could also answer this now.
“Regarding its new Warm Homes Programme, the Welsh Government has confirmed that a new demand-led scheme to replace Nest is expected to be procured before the end of 2023, which ‘will enable the new scheme to be awarded late autumn and mobilised over the winter, with delivery expected to be achievable from late winter’. Will you therefore provide an update as to when it will actually be procured and delivered?”
Mr Isherwood went on to highlight that although housing is key to sustainable community regeneration and tackling poverty, whilst the UK Government delivered 232,816 new homes in England just last year, the Labour Government here only delivered 5,065 - 2 per cent of the England figure, with 5 per cent of the population.
He also asked the Welsh Government to respond to the Child Poverty in Wales report published by Barnado's Cymru last week, which stated that ‘over a third of children - 34 per cent - in Wales are living in poverty, the highest proportion of any UK nation’, and to the charity’s call for the Welsh Government to implement a 'cost-of-living crisis fund to enable organisations and individuals to access funds for people facing immediate and significant hardship'.
He also referred to the UK Government’s extension to its £2 bus fare cap to help passengers with the Cost of Living and asked why the Welsh Government isn’t providing equivalent support to help passengers and protect services in Wales.