Newly elected Prime Minister Keir Starmer is due to visit Cardiff today for a “substantial meeting” with First Minister Vaughan Gething.
A Government spokesperson said the Prime Minister would bring “a message of hope”, and said the meeting at the Senedd would see the Prime Minister and First Minister “discuss the issues where both the UK and Welsh Government can begin immediate close co-operation to begin the work of change that people have voted for”.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said:
“Wales has enormous untapped potential ready to be unleashed.
“Working in lockstep with the Welsh Government and Vaughan, my Government will place the people and communities of Wales front and centre as we move towards a decade of national renewal.
“That means turning the page on years of economic hardship, towards genuine shared prosperity for working people, so they see and feel real tangible change in their lives.”
On Sunday the Prime Minister met Scottish First Minister John Swinney in Edinburgh and is due to travel to Northern Ireland before continuing to Wales.
The Government also said that new Secretary of State for Wales Jo Stevens “has started a full programme of meetings, briefings, and visits to begin delivering the new Government’s agenda for Wales”.
Stevens was elected as MP for Cardiff East at the General Election. Following her appointment as Welsh Secretary she said:
“Wales has a crucial role to play in powering the UK’s national renewal, contributing to our energy security and the industries that will deliver a prosperous future.
“My absolute priority is to deliver for Wales and work with the Welsh Government to stabilise the economy, drive investment and create jobs.
“As a result of our plans, people across Wales will share in that prosperity and we will tackle deprivation and poverty together.
“Under my leadership the Wales Office will once again be a steadfast advocate for Wales from within the UK Government, ensuring that Wales’s needs are prioritised, and its voice heard.
“I am determined to reset the relationship between the UK and Welsh Government. We will co-operate and work together to deliver better results for people in Wales.
“I am honoured to serve Wales and its people and bring about the change that our new Government has promised.”
Meanwhile, new Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds spoke on the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg about the future of the Tata steel plant in Port Talbot.
He said he and the Prime Minister had already spoken to Tata and said he would be speaking to unions this week.
Reynolds described safeguarding jobs as a “major priority” and said:
“It’s not about underwriting loss-making businesses in perhaps a way we might have thought of industrial policy in the past. It is about being a partner for investment in the future.”
He went on to say: “There is a better deal available for Port Talbot and the steel industry as a whole, I’m sure of that.”
