A NEW economic mission has been launched aimed at boosting pay and halving the productivity gap between Wales and the rest of the UK within ten years.

Adam Price, the Cabinet Minister for Enterprise, Connectivity and Energy, said the Welsh Government wanted to make Wales the easiest place in the UK to start, grow and invest in a business.

Welsh productivity currently stands around 15% below the UK average, a long-standing gap which ministers say has held back wages, business growth and living standards.

Delivering his first oral statement to the Senedd, Mr Price said the new approach would focus on supporting firms to expand, compete in high-value markets and create better-paid jobs.

The plan will be developed with businesses, trade unions, regional partners and the UK Government. It will also include reforms to the skills system, with a greater focus on helping workers progress rather than simply enter employment.

Mr Price said: “Today we announce a National Productivity Goal to close the gap with the rest of the UK and help unlock the full potential of the Welsh economy.

“For too long, Wales has struggled to close the gap with the rest of the UK when it comes to productivity. Announcing this target today shows our clear commitment to improving the lives of people living in Wales.

“By focusing on productivity, we will deliver higher pay, stronger businesses and thriving communities.

“This goal will give direction to our new Welsh innovation and development agency, shaping how we support businesses, develop skills and invest in the foundations of a stronger, more competitive Welsh economy.

“We are determined to turn ambition into action, creating a stronger, more productive economy that delivers for people in every part of Wales.”

Further details on how the productivity target will be measured and monitored are expected later this year.

JEREMY CORBYN is set to address the founding conference of Your Party Cymru in Aberystwyth next month, as the new left-wing movement prepares to organise in Wales ahead of the next Senedd elections.

The conference will be held at Aberystwyth University’s Penglais Campus on Saturday, July 18 and Sunday, July 19, and will also be accessible online.

Organisers say the event marks a major step in the creation of a distinctly Welsh branch of Your Party, with its own constitution, structures and political strategy.

The party, founded at UK level last November, says it wants to provide a new voice for working-class communities following what it describes as the “disintegration” of Labour’s dominance in Wales.

Members from across Wales are expected to debate the party’s founding documents, standing orders, organisational strategy and political statement.

The conference will also include fringe events, workshops and speakers, with trade unionists, campaigners, community organisers and first-time activists invited to take part.

Mr Corbyn said: “Wales deserves a political movement rooted in solidarity, democracy and hope.

“Across our communities, people are facing rising costs, struggling public services and a political system that too often feels distant from their lives.

“Your Party Cymru has been built by people who believe Wales can do better — trade unionists, campaigners, community organisers and ordinary people who want politics to work for the many, not the few.”

Maria Donnellan, Wales CEC member, said the conference would be more than a launch event.

She said: “This will be a founding moment where members from across Cymru come together to decide our founding documents, shape our priorities and take collective ownership of the party’s future.

“Every member has an equal voice, every vote counts, and together we will begin building a democratic socialist movement rooted in the communities of Wales.”

The party says the conference follows a series of regional all-member assemblies held across Wales earlier this year, along with consultations on how the party should organise itself geographically and democratically.

In-person tickets are priced at £10 per day, with organisers asking members facing financial barriers to contact them for support.

Your Party Cymru is also recruiting volunteer stewards and accessibility stewards for the event.

CONSERVATIVE MS Andrew RT Davies has accused the Welsh Government of “hypocrisy” after it confirmed it funds third sector organisations to provide legal advice to asylum seekers.

The row follows a written question tabled by Mr Davies, who asked why the Welsh Government was funding organisations to provide immigration legal advice.

Deputy First Minister Sioned Williams said asylum and immigration law, including access to legal advice, was reserved to the UK Government.

However, she added that, due to a shortage of immigration legal advisers and legal aid providers in Wales, the Welsh Government provides funding “to develop and improve the resilience of the legal sector in Wales”.

Mr Davies, Conservative MS for South Wales Central, said ministers had “no business” funding work in an area outside the Senedd’s remit.

He claimed the spending was particularly questionable at a time when the Welsh NHS remains under pressure.

Mr Davies said: “Plaid Cymru separatists are taking money from our NHS to fund legal advice for asylum seekers.

“Just this week, Rhun ap Iorwerth dodged tricky questions on nuclear power by claiming the matter was not devolved – yet he’s happy to act outside his remit to give asylum seekers special privileges.

“This shocking hypocrisy shows where Plaid Cymru separatists’ priorities really lie.”

The Welsh Government has said the funding is intended to address a shortage of immigration legal advisers in Wales.