The constant moaning that is prevalent amongst Ministers in Wales, fuelled by Welsh journalists and broadcasters, may play well amongst the party faithful in the run-up to the Assembly election but is it the image we wish to portray to the rest of the World?
It is clear from various opinion polls that the public accepts that there has to be a reduction in government expenditure and, more relevantly, that the last Labour Government is responsible for the financial mess that we are currently in.
Indeed, the indications are that Wales would have received the same level of cuts even if Labour had been in power.
Perhaps what worries Carwyn Jones and the rest of the government is that whilst they were planning for cuts of £500 million every year until 2014-15, they will instead have to find savings of £500m over the next four years in total. The UK Government has also offered to work closely with the Assembly Government to consider the Holtham Report on reforming the Barnett formula.
Imagine all the indignant press releases that have had to be scrapped as a result of the announcement.
What the public now expects from the Welsh Assembly Government is a responsible approach to reductions in expenditure.
It also expects the government to get off its arse and actually fight Wales’ corner in a positive manner, make the most of what it has already and take advantage of the few opportunities within the CSR.
For example,
- maximise the use of the European Structural Funding bonanza of £2 billion, which is currently woefully underspent, to deal with some of the deep rooted social and economic problems rather than on WAG pet projects
- work with the financial and professional institutions to ensure that Wales, unlike in previous years, gets its fair allocation of high street banks' proposed £1.5bn Business Growth Fund to help fund businesses
- create an alliance with Westminster politicians across the South West England to make a clear and unequivocal case for the electrification of the Great Western Line
- make sure Wales gets a number of the “elite network of research and development intensive technology and innovation centres”, based on Germany’s Fraunhofer institutes that Vince Cable will be spending £200 million on by 2014
- develop a strategy to get a higher proportion of the £1 billion in funding for a green investment bank and lobby to make sure that the £1 billion funding towards building one of the first power stations in the world with technology to capture and permanently store carbon emissions comes to Wales
- lobby to devolve other areas of funding from Westminster, such as university research funding, which would create tens of millions of pounds for higher education in Wales
- work with industry to make a business case for Wales to be the centre for developing offshore wind technology and manufacturing - Osborne announced £200 million for this area and for supporting the upgrade of ports to support the industry.
- start planning now to take full advantage of the construction of the Wylfa B nuclear power station for the benefit of the North Wales economy
Of course, it suits both Labour and Plaid to play the victim card but it can be overplayed, especially in the context of devolved politics where the decision on how to actually spend the £15 billion Welsh budget is ultimately up to the Assembly Government.
As the First Minister has made absolutely clear, he is committed to protecting the concessionary fares scheme, free prescriptions, free swimming and free breakfasts and milk for primary school children. However, if these universal benefits are delivered as a result of cuts in the NHS or schools when those budgets have clearly been protected at the UK level, then the majority of the Welsh public simply won’t stand for it.
More relevantly, he can’t then blame the UK Government for such a decision.
