When you’re appointed as a minister things happen fast. You meet the First Minister, are sworn in, meet your team and then the in-tray is thrust upon you. There are stakeholders to meet and decisions to make almost immediately. On day one I addressed a conference of business leaders.
This is the best way I can describe what it was like to be appointed the Welsh government minister for culture, skills and social partnership. It would be easy to be swept away by the speed of things, but it is vital that you remember why you are there and the principles you want to bring to the job.
Principles are shaped by your upbringing and life experiences. I’m proud to have lived all my life in Connah’s Quay, a working-class community in Deeside, built on industry.
During my first question session as culture minister, I was asked about my priorities, and I wanted to answer that question not just with a list but with an idea of who I am and what drives me. I summed it up by using a slogan that everyone involved in the Labour movement will be familiar with; “give us bread but give us roses too.” As we head to our annual Welsh Labour conference, I wanted to set out what I mean by that within the context of culture.
Ambitious about culture – for everyone
I want to be ambitious about ensuring people from more deprived communities have access to culture and to challenge our cultural institutions to ask what they are doing to achieve this. There are too many examples of working-class children growing up in Wales who have not even had the chance to access the cultural opportunities on their doorstep. The arts and culture broaden the mind and bring with them so many opportunities in life.
Similarly, I am keen for the employment opportunities created by the huge growth in creative industries to be open to everyone. Latest statistics on the creative sectors show this part of the economy continues to perform well, generating an annual turnover of £1.4 billion and employing 32,500 people.
This is a major sector in the Welsh economy. Since Creative Wales’ introduction in 2020, Welsh government have invested £26.5 million in production funding to support 47 projects and the expected spend back in the Welsh Economy is over £300 million. One of those projects is the award-winning BBC series Lost Boys and Fairies was filmed in Cardiff. Another project currently underway is the film Madfabulous, being made by Mad as Birds, a production company based in North Wales.
Good culture is good for the whole economy
There are plenty of examples demonstrating how projects like these benefit local communities as well as the wider economy. A recent visit to Bad Wolf Studios where all things Doctor Who and much more are filmed demonstrated what is possible. I met a group of young people from some of Wales’s most deprived communities who had all been given the chance to work in the industry through Bad Wolf’s community outreach work. This is good for them, good for their communities and of course for Bad Wolf as well.
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I’d also like to see a growth in the number of apprenticeships on offer in the culture and creative industries. Giving people the opportunity to learn on the job whilst earning can be life changing. As a former apprentice myself I am incredibly proud to now have responsibility for skills and apprenticeships in the Welsh government.
What you learn both in your education setting and, importantly, on the shop floor can change your life in whatever sector you go into in the future. I recently met with apprentices at General Electric in Caerphilly. For them, like it was for me, learning on the job has been a game changer.
Workers and business thrive when the economy promotes fair work
Within my portfolio also sits social partnership, a way of working together between employers and workers to solve problems and improve the well-being of Wales. I am extremely pleased that the UK government’s employment rights bill takes the approach I am championing in Wales – working with employers, working people and unions to deliver a set of reforms that stop exploitative practices and promote growth. In the Labour movement we have always taken the view that workers and business thrive when you build an economy that promotes fair work.
The last UK Labour government moved quickly to introduce the minimum wage and it’s great to see that commitment continue with the introduction of this groundbreaking legislation which will see an end to exploitative zero-hour contracts and unscrupulous fire and rehire practices. It will also establish rights to bereavement and parental leave from day one, a stark contrast to the Tory leader labelling maternity leave ‘excessive’.
We all recognise that these are tough times and that years of austerity damaged our cultural as well as social fabric. As we build the foundations of recovery, we must remember the benefits of delivering growth should stretch to roses too and ensuring working class people can access and benefit from our wonderful cultural scene.
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