Cabinet meeting: 12 January 2026

• Rt Hon Eluned Morgan MS (Chair)
• Huw Irranca-Davies MS
• Jayne Bryant MS
• Mark Drakeford MS
• Rebecca Evans MS
• Jane Hutt MS
• Jeremy Miles MS
• Lynne Neagle MS
• Ken Skates MS
• Julie James MS
   
• Dawn Bowden MS
• Sarah Murphy MS
• Jack Sargeant MS

Apologies

• Vikki Howells MS

Officials

• Andrew Goodall, Permanent Secretary
• Rachel Garside-Jones, Director Office of the First Minister and Delivery
• Rebecca Dunn, Head of Cabinet Division
• Victoria Jones, Principal Private Secretary First Minister
• Toby Mason, Head of Strategic Communications
• Sinead Gallagher, Deputy Director Cabinet Office
• Luke Young, Special Adviser
• Sarah Dickins, Special Adviser
• Madeleine Brindley, Special Adviser
• Haf Davies, Special Adviser
• Victoria Evans, Special Adviser
• David Hooson, Special Adviser
• Nadila Hussein, Special Adviser
• Kirsty Keenan, Special Adviser
• Jackie Jones, Special Adviser
• Stephen Jones, Special Adviser
• Philippa Marsden, Special Adviser
• Tal Michael, Special Adviser
• Mary Wimbury, Special Adviser
• Christopher W Morgan, Head of Cabinet Secretariat (minutes)
• Damian Roche, Cabinet Secretariat
• Helena Bird, Permanent Secretary’s office
• Carwyn Wycherley, Cabinet Office
• Kath Hallett, First Minister’s Office
• Tracey Burke, Director General Climate Change & Rural Affairs
• Sioned Evans, Chief Operating Officer
• Judith Paget, Director General Strategy
• Andrew Slade, Director General Economy, Energy and Transport
• Jacqueline Totterdell, Director General Health
• Emma Williams, Director General Education, Culture & Welsh Language
• Nicola Williams, Director Legal Services
• Andrew Jeffreys, Director Treasury (items 6)
• Emma Watkins, Deputy Director, Budget and Government Business (item 6)

1.1 Cymeradwyodd y Cabinet gofnodion 15 Rhagfyr 2025 / Cabinet approved the minutes of 15 December 2025.

Visits to Catalonia and the Basque Country

2.1 The First Minister informed Cabinet she had visited Catalonia and the Basque Country the previous week, and signed memorandums of understanding with their respective governments.

Cabinet meeting in North Wales

2.2 The First Minister advised Cabinet that a meeting would be taking place in North Wales on Monday 23 February.

3.1 Cabinet considered the Plenary Grid and noted the Senedd would be considering an emergency bill in relation to the Mental Health Review Tribunal for Wales. The intention was for the Bill to be introduced and agreed that week, assuming the Senedd agreed to legislate. As such, voting time was scheduled for 8:05pm on Tuesday and would be around 9:05pm on Wednesday.

3.2 However, the Bill was quite short, and the timing was dependent on the number of amendments tabled at stage 2 and three, therefore, the time currently allocated may not be needed.

4.1 The Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care provided Cabinet with an update on NHS Winter Resilience, in advance of the statement to the Senedd the following day.

4.2 Winter planning and preparation had begun in March the previous year. This included regional and operational resilience plans, with a strong focus on vaccination uptake, community capacity, urgent and emergency care and patient flow.

4.3 A key initiative was the two-week intervention period before Christmas, known as the ‘Winter Sprint’, designed to improve discharge productivity and support earlier safer discharges. This had a positive impact by increasing the proportion of patients discharged before mid-day, while reducing corridor care.

4.4 As expected, at times demand had risen over the past 2 weeks, particularly for ambulance and emergency services. Seasonal illnesses, such as flu, and changing weather conditions had added to the pressures.

4.5 Despite this, the system broadly remained resilient. Ambulance response times had improved for the most critical cases as December progressed, supported by better handover performance, with 50% fewer hours lost compared to the previous year. Emergency Departments had treated more acutely unwell patients, but staff prioritised emergency cases and maintained safe care.

4.6 Social Care services had also played a vital role, working in partnership to support vulnerable individuals, despite capacity being tested.

4.7 There had been difficulties in relation to the number of respiratory illnesses, falls, and staffing pressures. In addition, the snow had caused transport issues. All these factors had impinged on patient flow and created additional risks across hospital sites.

4.8 To mitigate the challenges, health boards had opened additional hospital beds, redeployed staff to areas of greatest need and increased the use of community-based services. There had also been investment in additional non-emergency transport capacity to facilitate earlier discharges and innovative methods, such as a 999 falls coordination desk as part of changes to the ambulance clinical response model. Daily monitoring and proactive surge planning had continued.

4.9 To help manage pressures for the rest of the season, the 2nd Winter Sprint would take place between 21 January and 4 February, to maintain focus on discharge planning, community capacity and operational resilience, while continuing to monitor staffing and weather-related risks.

4.10 Early planning and targeted interventions had helped to deliver safe and timely care for the vast majority of patients, and the system has shown greater resilience than in previous years.

4.11 Cabinet noted the update.

5.1 The Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Energy and Planning provided an update on the Welsh Economy, in advance of the statement to the Senedd the following day.

5.2 The statement would be focusing on two matters, showcasing what had been achieved in extremely challenging circumstances during the current Senedd, while giving a clear sense of the progress towards a more modern, competitive economy.

5.3 Despite Brexit, COVID-19, and years of austerity, the economic mission had focused on growth, resilience, and fairness, while delivering good quality jobs. The statement would also be clear about opportunities within the economy, recognising the continuing pivot towards a clearer focus on productivity and building upon the infrastructure and partnerships already established.

5.4 Progress had been made across the 4 priority areas. In terms of Green Prosperity, there had been significant investment in renewables and decarbonisation, positioning Wales as a leader in offshore wind and circular economy. The Young Person’s Guarantee, apprenticeships, and targeted support for those furthest from the labour market had helped to deliver Skills and Fair Work.

5.5 Investment Zones and Freeports, driving advanced manufacturing, clean energy, and innovation were at the forefront in delivering Regional Strength, while Business Wales, the Development Bank, and the Innovation Strategy, along with supporting R&D and entrepreneurship, helped deliver Innovation and Growth.

5.6 In terms of future development, the oral statement would focus on the Industrial Strategy and the sectors highlighted at the Investment Summit.

5.7 The statement would outline the sector strengths, which included renewable energy, advanced manufacturing, AI, and defence. It would also highlight areas such as the young person’s guarantee, apprenticeships and the circular economy where there had been a high impact.

5.8 In terms of specifics, £2 million had been earmarked to support SMEs in the use of artificial intelligence, and the Wales Union Learning Fund would allow trade unions to develop the essential skills and employability of the workforce, with a particular emphasis on removing barriers for traditional non-learners. In addition, there had been changes to the planning system.

5.9 The statement would also make clear the government was building an economy that was fair, resilient, and globally competitive.

5.10 Cabinet noted the update.

6.1 The Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Welsh Language introduced the paper, which asked Cabinet to approve the Final Budget package 2026-2027 for publication on 20 January, including the MEG level allocations. Cabinet was also asked to note the position in relation to the devolved taxes and the next steps for finalising the documentation.

6.2 There would be no changes to Welsh Rates of Income Tax nor Land Transaction Tax. However, the Landfill Disposal Tax Standard Rate would be uprated in line with the revised retail price index inflation that had been published in November and the Lower Rate would be increased to match the Lower Rate in England (to minimise the risk of cross-border movements of waste).

6.3 In terms of changes since the publication of the Draft Budget in October, agreement had been reached with Plaid Cymru in December to secure safe passage of the budget through the Senedd. This resulted in additional resource funding of £112.8 million for local government, to provide an average increase of 4.5%, with all councils receiving at least a 4% uplift. There would also be £180 million of resource funding for the Health and Social Care MEG, amounting to a 3.6% increase overall, primarily to support the NHS. As part of the agreement, £120 million of capital would be left unallocated, making it available for the next government.

6.4 This resulted in a small amount of funding available for allocation.

6.5 However, there was some uncertainty about the impact of the recent announcement by the UK government on changes to Non-Domestic Rates (NDR) on hospitality, specifically public houses. The UK Treasury had not yet provided any details on the announcement nor indicated whether there would be any consequentials. It would be too late to make any changes to the Final Budget, but any amendments would be reflected in the First Supplementary Budget of 2026-2027.

6.6 Cabinet welcomed the paper.

6.7 Cabinet approved the paper.

Cabinet Secretariat
January 2026