The National Assembly is ten years old, so it is perhaps fitting that this issue of Insider contains a fair bit of coverage of the public sector.
Finance Wales has raised more funds, there are grant schemes for smaller companies, green policy announcements and a series of measures aimed at easing the downturn.
I know plenty of people in business who sigh deeply when they hear about another initiative from the Assembly. Some tell of trying to get support, only for their scheme to be ignored, while others complain about labyrinthine bureaucracy.
I would rather take each bit as it comes. An extra £150m for Finance Wales to invest in Welsh companies must be a welcome development – particularly as this is the only scheme of its kind in the UK. Equity investment is hard to get in the £500,000 to £2m range and this new fund will hopefully plug that gap.
Not only will it help local high-growth businesses, it will also attract more companies like Sheffield University spin-out Diurnal, which recently moved to Cardiff.
Grants of up to £5,000 a time for smaller companies may help, although for that kind of money some may wonder whether it is worth completing the paperwork. I guess the ones that need the money will make the effort.
More of a worry is the volume of environmental legislation, what you might call “green tape”. New rules on sustainable buildings, eco-friendly building techniques and waste reduction are coming in at a dizzying pace.
Developing green technology and energy should benefit Wales, and perhaps the planet, in the long term. But as we report in this issue, the construction industry is finding it hard to keep up with targets.
Deputy first minister Ieuan Wyn Jones came up with some recession-busting policies after consulting companies at a series of economic summits. It would make sense for his cabinet colleague, environment minister Jane Davidson, to work more closely with the construction industry. If they could come up with a practical, workable scheme, Wales would once again be leading the rest of the UK.
Douglas Friedli, editor
Also in: May/June 2009
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Interview: Henry Engelhardt
Henry Engelhardt, chief executive of Admiral Group, occupies a particularly lofty place on the Welsh business scene.
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Put on a show
The right event, the right audience and the right location can make an impact that’s hard to achieve any other way. Carina Phillips asks the experts how to achieve perfection.