The Shadow Minister for Sport has called for the immediate publication of a Government strategy aimed at boosting the profile of Wales during the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
The document – appearing to comprise two or three sheets of A4 paper – was waved in the Senedd Chamber by the First Minister this week, during a Welsh Conservative debate on the issue.
It followed repeated claims by both the Welsh Government and the First Minister himself – in response to FOI requests and Written Questions – that no such strategy existed.
Shadow Minister for Sport, Mohammad Asghar AM, said:
“I welcome this dramatic U-turn from the First Minister and I am pleased that he has heeded my calls for a specific strategy on using the Olympics to boost tourism and business in Wales.
“For months the government’s been telling me it has nothing of the sort and there appeared to be no indication there would be. I regret that – if a strategy was indeed in the works – officials deemed it unnecessary to report that to the official opposition in the Assembly.
“I now call on the First Minister to publish this strategy as soon as possible in the interests of transparency.
“If it’s appropriate – and longer than the two or three sheets of paper waved in the Chamber – it will make it clear how the health, tourism and business benefits from the Olympics can be properly capitalised.
“I don’t want to hear how Wales is open for business despite the Olympics anymore. This is an event that should be embraced – and I welcome any strategy with that at its core.”
