Time for a rethink on regional growth deals

EARLIER this week, the Senedd’s Economy, Trade and Rural Affairs Committee raised serious concerns about the performance of Wales's city and regional growth deals, particularly in north Wales and the Cardiff Capital Region.

- DYLAN JONES-EVANS

These deals were launched with the promise of transforming our economy, rebalancing regional growth and creating thousands of jobs.

Yet the committee's findings show patchy progress and growing risks that threaten to undermine their original ambition.

In north Wales, just 35 jobs have been created and £1.8m of private investment secured to date, after its flagship nuclear project at Trawsfynydd fell through.

Meanwhile, Cardiff Capital Region is tied up in the massive redevelopment of the former Aberthaw Power Station, bought for £8.6m, with £30m already spent on demolition and estimates that full development could cost over £1bn.

A procurement dispute has already resulted in a £5.25m settlement, and despite supposed interest from investors, the sheer scale of risk to public finances is troubling.

Even Swansea Bay, which has often been held up as a success story, has only created 896 jobs since 2017 against an original target of 9,700 and while it has leveraged £133m in private investment, that remains far from the transformational change that was originally promised.

Too often, these city and growth deals have slipped into being slow-moving property schemes.

Sites are bought, plans are drawn up, and years pass while the private sector they were meant to support is left waiting.

If Wales is serious about growth, we need to rethink what these deals are for and who they are meant to serve, with an overwhelming priority to get funding flowing directly into the private sector.