Conservatives promise £2bn investment in Wales’ infrastructure as they launch Senedd manifesto

The Welsh Conservatives have promised to invest £2bn in Wales’ infrastructure as they launch their Senedd election manifesto today.

The money would go into the M4 Relief Road around Newport, upgrades to the A55 and A40, and 20,000 green charging points, they said.

The Conservative manifesto today in Wrexham had been due to take place last week but was delayed by the death of the Duke of Edinburgh.

At the launch, Welsh Conservative leader Andrew RT Davies will set out what he will describe as Wales’ “national mission to get the economy on the road to recovery”.

Among their pledges is to cut the basic level of income tax at the back end of the next Senedd term so everyone benefits from our economic recovery.

“Over the past 12 months, the coronavirus crisis has tested our communities and public services beyond recognition, but we’ve seen the very best of Wales when everyone has worked together in the national interest,” Andrew RT Davies said ahead of the launch.

“As we move out of lockdown the next big challenge awaits, and we will need to undertake another critical national mission to get the economy on the road to recovery and create new jobs. 

“We are currently experiencing the deepest downturn since records began, and evidence shows that Welsh communities could be amongst the worst hit. We urgently need a plan for recovery and for jobs.

“Like COVID, our economic recovery is going to require a truly national effort, and if we are successful in delivering on our commitment of creating 65,000 new jobs it will be down to a true Team Wales approach – with businesses, entrepreneurs, government and the public sector working in unison.”

‘Ambitious’

Among the Conservatives’ pledges is to implement a cut of at least 1p in the £ to the basic rate of income tax to support hardworking families.

Other key economic policies include:  

• Abolishing business rates for small businesses and reform the outdated tax on growth

• Boosting opportunities for workers hardest hit by the pandemic with our Covid “Retrain, Gain” programme to get people into key sectors to kickstart the economy

• Launching new support for micro businesses with our “Jump Start Scheme” paying the employer National Insurance contributions of two new employees for two years to accelerate growth

• Establishing “Innovate Wales”, based in North Wales, a one stop shop for firms to support new enterprises, and encourage existing businesses to grow and export.

• Delivering a “new deal” for North Wales

“The Welsh Conservatives have an ambitious plan and will stop at nothing in our drive to create the first business-friendly economy in Wales for a generation and ensure we recover from the pandemic and 22 years of Labour rule,” Andrew RT Davies said.

“After two decades of failure in the halls of Cardiff Bay, Welsh Conservatives will place delivery at the heart of our manifesto and when we meet our commitments, we will ensure hardworking people in Wales benefit with a cut in income tax at the end of the next Senedd. 

“Wales has a huge economic challenge ahead and we can’t afford another five years of Labour propped up by the nationalists who will clobber Welsh families with higher taxes.

“We need change and it’s time to turn the page on the same old Labour Party that has allowed Wales’ economic problems to fester over the past two decades and have no plan to fix things.”