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The Budget

That might well be the case, but the reality is that the perception is out there, which will be damaging. The fact that electrification will not go all the way to Swansea in the first phase of the scheme creates the perception that we are a second-class region as far as the UK Government are concerned, which is deeply worrying. I am grateful for those words from the Secretary of State, but we need action on that to ensure that we get that electrification all the way to Swansea. I was disappointed that the Budget did not address the financial injustices that are suffered by the Welsh Government. If the UK Government learn one lesson from the overwhelming yes vote in the referendum for further powers for Wales, it should be that the people of my country are no longer prepared to be taken for fools. The UK Government, however, continue to be ignorant of the ill effects of the Barnett formula. It is estimated that if public spending in Wales between 1999 and 2010 had matched public spending in England, the Welsh block grant would be £1.4 billion more than it is today. Let the UK Government be in no doubt that there will be no consensus on the proposed funding reforms unless a Barnett floor is put in place, followed by a change to a needs-based system as advocated by the independent Holtham commission.