How refreshing it always is when we have a Government committed to co-operation in values and in action. It means that when we as co-operators push the case for co-operation, we have Ministers who open the door to do more.

This is definitely the case on employee ownership, a model where employees have a stake in the ownership and management of the company in which they work. Read more about our campaigning on this here as well as the ground-breaking CLES report on what more we could do in Wales here.

On the back of the CLES report we have been constructively engaging with Welsh Government who already have a laudable commitment to double the size of employee-ownership in this Senedd term. But we think we can help them to go further, using legislation and other practical measures. So I put this to Minister Vaughan Gething during a recent debate in the Senedd.

Welsh Government Economy Minister Vaughan Gething is also a Welsh Labour and Co-operative Member of the Senedd himself by the way. He also happens to be the Minister with responsibility for co-operatives in Welsh Government. Imagine if we had that in a future Labour government in Westminster!

Vaughan’s response was hugely encouraging. We agree with him that much more can be done without legislation – though we are all inspired by Italy’s Marcora Law of course. But he is also willing to work with us and the CLES authors and Cwmpas to explore what can be done now and to consider whether Welsh law could be helpful. This is truly positive, and it’s great to have a Minister and a government which listens and which gets what we are trying to achieve.

If you’d like to watch the short exchange in the Senedd on employee-ownership, then click on the link here. And do support our campaign to make employee ownership a greater part of our economy in Wales, where workers have a real stake in their workplace, and where we build a fairer future for all.