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Welsh Government International Relations

Is this devolved to Wales?

Where is this happening?

What's happening?

Why is this happening?

Who has been affected?

What's happening?

Why is this happening?

Who has been affected?

Charts (if needed)

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£ 58 million in total Since 2019

4.7 million annual running cost of international offices in 2024-25
16 billion of inward investment secured as part of international summits

Who has raised this at the Senedd?

Dr Dafydd Trystan MS

Government Effectiveness Minister

Anna Nicholl MS

Backbencher

Sarah Rees MS

Backbencher

Dr Gwyn Williams MS

Backbencher

Jason O'Connell MS

Shadow Economy Minister

Joe Martin MS

Backbencher

Andrew Griffin MS

Chair: Public Accounts

Cai Parry-Jones MS

Shadow Finance Minister

Iain McIntosh MS

Backbencher

Huw Thomas MS

Backbencher

Darren Millar MS

Conservative Group Leader

Paul Rock MS

Backbencher

Dr Dafydd Trystan MS

Government Effectiveness Minister

Anna Nicholl MS

Backbencher

Sarah Rees MS

Backbencher

Dr Gwyn Williams MS

Backbencher

Jason O'Connell MS

Shadow Economy Minister

Joe Martin MS

Backbencher

Andrew Griffin MS

Chair: Public Accounts

Cai Parry-Jones MS

Shadow Finance Minister

Iain McIntosh MS

Backbencher

Huw Thomas MS

Backbencher

Darren Millar MS

Conservative Group Leader

Paul Rock MS

Backbencher

What are the party positions on this?

Plaid Cymru backbenchers support the Welsh Government’s maintaining an international relations policy. They believe scrapping or downscaling it would be isolationist.

This argument for isolation is a false one. It suggests that, by looking inward, we become stronger. But I'm still waiting for an example of a Brexit benefit. In a world facing climate change, conflict and inequality, no nation is an island. ....these are reminders that our economies and our societies are intertwined. I know the lifelong benefits of programmes like Taith, enabling learners from every part of Wales to travel to more than 90 countries, broadening horizons that no classroom alone can reach. This is not wasteful spending. It's a prudent investment in our shared future.

Unlike Reform UK, who want to shut us off from the rest of the world, Plaid Cymru want to improve the access that our domestic businesses have to global markets, as well as attract international investment into Wales. Since 2020, there have been 280 investment projects by foreign-owned companies in Wales, creating and safeguarding more than 24,000 jobs. We understand that global Wales supports our businesses and grows our economy, and that plans to cut all international spending will weaken our economy and cut jobs.

Our global health partnerships are things we should be proud of. I took part in Vision 2020, which was, in fact, part of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine with the World Health Organization and the Royal College of Ophthalmologists, to prevent avoidable blindness on a worldwide basis. This was an all-UK thing, but within Wales it was funded in large part from the Wales for Africa programme, for which our eye department in Swansea was very grateful.

Reform UK are opposed to the Welsh Government spending any money on international relations as it’s non-devolved. They believe it has redirected funding from elsewhere.

....we send Uganda money to plant trees as well, because we won that competition, 'Who can find the stupidest use of taxpayer money?' We actually asked some Ugandan people what they thought about Wales's scheme to send them money for trees and they said, 'Why are you sending us money for trees?' We then asked the same question to some Welsh students who had been through our underfunded education system, but we didn't get a reply because we had e-mailed them and they couldn't read.

Let's strip it back. We're talking about a choice of how we spend around £9 million pounds a year, and when you look at that, it stops being abstract very quickly. A significant part of that, around £4.6 million to £4.7 million every year, is simply spent on maintaining the overseas offices. So before anything else happens, almost half of that funding has already been committed.

This debate is not about isolationism, as was referred to earlier. Wales should continue to trade internationally, Wales should continue to welcome visitors and investment from around the world, and we should continue to promote Welsh products, Welsh businesses and Welsh tourism on the global stage....But there is a clear difference between promoting Wales and spending Wales taxpayers' money on activities that fall outside...the core responsibilities of devolved Government.

Labour supports the Welsh Government’s international relations policy and believe it has helped attract inward investment.

....the international investment summit held in Newport last December; the £16 billion headline investment secured through that conference would not have been secured without the work of our international offices. Indeed, in 2024-25, Wales saw a 23 per cent increase in levels of foreign direct investment, with 65 new investments, 2,500 new jobs, with Wales having the second highest percentage increase in projects of any part of the UK.

The Conservatives do not support the Welsh Government spending any funding on international relations (particularly foreign aid) – which they believe should be exclusively led at a UK level. They have also criticised the lack of transparency around the Welsh Government’s international programme.

I think it is a scandal that it's impossible to try to scrutinise the £58 million that has been spent to date on these international relationships. It's a shame on us all that that information isn't readily available to Members of this Senedd, so that we can do our job in holding the Welsh Government to account for the money that it spends. And as has already been pointed out, it's not their money in the first place: it's taxpayers' money. It's every single person in this country that deserves to know where that money is spent.

The question I have is what benefit do people in Wales see as a result of a tree planted in a field in Uganda. What benefit does that bring to someone whose public toilets are closing, libraries are threatened with closure and leisure centres are threatened with closure? I just can't see that it brings any. That's why I say it's far better to encourage people to give generously of their own volition, rather than the Welsh Government intervene in this spending area for which it's not responsible.

The Greens support the Welsh Government maintaining international relations, pointing to notable policy successes like Fair Trade.

The people of Wales have always been outward looking. We understand our place in the world and the difference it makes when we do the little things, both at home and abroad....Many of us in this Chamber will remember 18 years ago last week being so proud when Wales became the world's first Fairtrade Nation, which proved that Cymru can be and is a global leader....Fair-trade goods are now widely available and recognised by the Welsh public, and the impact of this on producer communities is enormous.

Jane Dodds hasn’t said anything on this specifically.

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Who is responsible?

Rhun ap Iorwerth MS

First Minister

What have ministers said?

The Welsh Government's spending on international work is, as we've heard, some £9 million, or 0.03 per cent of the overall budget—a small contribution, I would suggest, to building our prosperity, protecting our public services, strengthening our culture and promoting our values. It is how Wales places our place in the world, demonstrating confidence, responsibility and a clear sense of who we are. Our international work turns that belief into action, creating jobs and investment.

Our diaspora tell Wales's story overseas and are an asset to supporting our ambitions. We are here to learn and to share what we know with others. Our international relationships bring economic benefits, whether this is the multimillion pound investment by Vishay, securing 500 jobs in Newport's semiconductor sector, or an additional £475 million in export orders for Welsh companies who have received Welsh Government support. These results are real for every one of our constituents right across Wales.

What's being done about this?

What do the Welsh Government want to do?

Does this need a new law or regulations?

How long will this take?

What do the Welsh Government want to do?

Does this need a new law or regulations?

How long will this take?

What have the Senedd's Committees said?

Nothing has been discussed yet.

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Relevant Votes

Date	Motion Number	Subject	Tabled As	Binding Vote?	Votes For	Votes Against	Absent/No Vote	Outcome
17/06/26	NDM9249	As amended	Motion as amended	No	48	37	8	AGREED
17/06/26	NDM9249	Amendment – Regrets Reform’s isolationism	Plaid Cymru	No	49	36	8	AGREED
17/06/26	NDM9249	End all Welsh Government International Spending	Reform UK	No	37	48	8	REJECTED