In Parliament this week I spoke of how the UK Government’s decision to apply tax and benefit deductions to the £500 bonus for care workers introduced by the Welsh Government was mean-spirited.

Speaking in Treasury Questions, Jessica Morden said “Can the Minister tell my constituents who are care workers why, when they have worked their hearts out and been given a £500 thank you by the Welsh Labour Government, this Government sees fit to deduct money from them, leaving those on universal credit with around £125? That is just mean-spirited.”

In response, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury Steve Barclay claimed that the UK Government had allocated £4 billion to the Welsh Government to spend on devolved matters.

The minister’s dismissive response was disappointing – this is a government that once encouraged us to clap care workers, and now spitefully chips away at a richly deserved goodwill payment for care workers. Ministers in Whitehall are undermining the Welsh Government and letting down the care workers who went above and beyond for us all during the pandemic.