Recommendation 3

HM Government Acknowledged

• The Office of the Secretary of State for Wales held a series of events in November and December to help businesses and Business Representative Organisations (BROs) in Wales prepare for the end of the Transition Period. The events included four webinars attended by over 600 Welsh businesses in total. • The Office held two of these webinars jointly with officials from HMRC, enabling Welsh businesses to question HMRC directly on the new arrangements for import and export with the EU after the end of the Transition Period, and one webinar with Home Office officials, enabling close examination of the new immigration system. • The fourth and final webinar took place on 10 December and was hosted jointly by the Secretary of State for Wales and the Welsh Minister for the Economy, Transport and North Wales. The webinar demonstrated to Welsh businesses the close working relationship between the UK Government and Welsh Government on the end of Transition. It followed on from a 3 December joint letter from both Ministers to Welsh business explaining where and how they could obtain further help and support. • The Office complemented the webinars with a series of roundtables with the Secretary of State for Wales. The roundtables provided for in-depth discussion with firms from specific sectors of Welsh industry—including advanced manufacturing, construction and agriculture, food and drink—on how leaving the EU Single Market and Customs Union could affect the sector. Each session was chaired by a Welsh BRO and included guests from elsewhere in Government— for example, the Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, George Eustice, attended the agriculture, food and drink roundtable. • The roundtables resulted in a number of subsequent industry-led, “self-help” events where firms in specific sectors got together to share best practice on preparing for the end of the Transition Period. • OSSW has continued to engage with Welsh business and BROs following the end of the Transition Period, including events chaired by the Secretary of State for Wales to learn more about the content of the UK-EU Trade and Co-operation Agreement and its practical operation.