‘Wales in need of a minister to sell our country to the world’
WALES is currently in need of a minister to sell Wales to the world, according to a report from the National Assembly.
A National Assembly committee believes a new trade and international relations minister would help Wales grow.
The economy, infrastructure and skills committee also wants the Welsh Government’s 16 overseas offices to have a clearer purpose and measurable criteria for success.
The committee found “pockets of good practice and innovation” across different government departments during its inquiry, which focused on three key sectors – tourism, trade and inward investment and education.
However, good practice was scarce and not enough was being done to draw those strings together for a more coherent approach to selling Wales to the world.
The Welsh Government’s 16 international offices, which include five in the United States and three in China, are responsible for trade and investment, government relations, tourism, culture and education.
The committee found that their roles were either unclear or unknown to Welsh businesses looking for overseas opportunities. Each overseas office should have a clear remit and performance plan, says the committee.
It has also reiterated a call for Air Passenger Duty (APD) to be devolved to Wales, as in Scotland, after hearing evidence that it suppresses growth in the tourism sector and employment prospects while hampering Cardiff Airport’s ability to expand.
“Wales is a small nation in a big world. But now, more than ever, we need to be reaching out and developing the links that will help us prosper and grow,” said Russell George AM, chairman of the economy, infrastructure and skills committee.
“With Brexit approaching, it has been widely acknowledged that there will be challenges and opportunities ahead, both as we renegotiate our relationship with our neighbours in Europe and as we look beyond those borders to seek new affiliations with emerging or expanding markets.
“It is clear to the committee that more can be done to sell Wales to the world in a strategic and joinedup way.
“Overseas offices should have their roles and remits made clear and, crucially, the next First Minister should seriously consider creating a specific cabinet post to combine responsibilities for international trade and Brexit implementation. The time to get this right is now.”
Commenting on the publication of the report Ben Francis, the Federation of Small Business Wales policy chairman, said: “We welcome that the committee took on board our evidence regarding the need for an explicit trade and investment strategy.
“We feel that this is necessary to guide decision- making on inward investment, and to provide more clarity on our key aims.
“We also support the calls for overseas offices to be better funded and more effectively tasked by Welsh Government.
“In our response to calls for evidence for this consultation, we stated that overseas offices do not seem to have a tangible effect on export performance, despite the fact that one in five smaller firms currently export in Wales, with more seeking to do so in the future.
“Overseas offices should be a huge part of this.
“We would agree with the committee’s assertion that there should be a published, detailed remit for the overseas offices, and that this should be communicated to businesses to ensure that maximum use can be made of the offices as an asset for overseas trade.”