Oral Statement - The Ryder Cup 2010

Nearly a decade ago, the hard work began on presenting the case for the Ryder Cup to be held in Wales in 2010. Against the odds, the bid by Sir Terry Matthews, the Welsh Assembly Government and the city of Newport won in 2001. The parameters and commitments were set out in the successful bid, which included a promise to deliver all-Wales benefits before, during and after the event. I believe that we have fulfilled our goal in relation to the first two and we are now turning our attention to the post-event benefits.

The Ryder Cup is golf’s biggest sporting event and it is the only event in which Europe is represented by one team. This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to put Wales firmly on the global map and it was one of the greatest opportunities that we have had to showcase our country on the world stage. Once the bid was won, we set up and funded Ryder Cup Wales 2010 Ltd to work with us, the European tour, the Celtic Manor Resort, thecity of Newport and a range of other partners to deliver what has been hailed not only as a distinctly Welsh Ryder Cup but, in many quarters, as the best Ryder Cup ever.

Over the 10 years that have passed, we have held over 60 Summer of Golf events across the length and breadth of Wales, taking top-quality golf to the Welsh public and helping to showcase great courses such as Royal St Davids in Harlech and MachynysPeninsula near Llanelli. That has helped by the award-winning Golf Tourism initiatives run by Visit Wales, using the Ryder Cup as a catalyst. Between 2004 and 2009, there was a 32 per cent increase in the number of golf tourists, with a value rising from £23million in 2004 to £34.7 million in 2009. Courses from St Pierre in Chepstow to Nefyn on the Llŷn peninsula have all seen the benefits.We have also successfully focused on encouraging more people into golf through schools initiatives and other schemes delivered by Golf Development Wales. As a result of the £2 million Ryder Cup legacy fund, there will be 40 more golf facilities across Wales, all aimed at increasing public access to golf.

All these initiatives and more were delivered pre-event, but,as I said earlier, the Ryder Cup week itself offered us a world stage, and when you are on a world stage you cannot afford to fluff your lines. We had to invest time, effort and resources to ensure that that did not happen, and the feedback, even from our harshest critics, was that, despite the weather challenges, to say the least, we delivered our lines almost word perfectly. We must all take great pride in that fact.

Before the matches started, we hosted a media reception for the world’s press who were attending, and the players and their wives were taken to a dinner at Cardiff castle before joining guests and the general public at the Welcome to Walesdinner and concert at the Millennium Stadium. As Paul Kelso writing inThe Daily Telegraphput it:

'The build up raised the bar for future Ryder Cup hosts, with the Millennium Stadium concert on Wednesday night giving what used to be a team golf match the feel of a genuine big event’.

During the match days, we hosted a number of eventsto showcase Wales to all those who were visiting for the Ryder Cup. They included about 100 guests of the Welsh Assembly Government, whose invitations were considered against submitted business cases, plus guests of Sir Terry Matthews and the Celtic Manor, and guests of the European tour. Together with the Deputy First Minister and the Minister for Heritage, I attended events throughout the week and, over the three days of the tournament, undertook nearly 30 meetings with key individuals,including the President of the European Commission, President Barroso, and a number of ambassadors, as well as representatives of key businesses. Hosting any major event—and this is probably the biggest event that Wales can host—involves significant investment if you are to get it right. Our direct funding as a Government amounted to £42.9 million, of which some £38 million was channelled through Ryder Cup Wales 2010 Limited to deliver the specific commitments made in the bid, including the Summer of Golf and the legacy fund that I mentioned earlier, together with the 'Welcome to Wales’ event and other associated activities during the week of the Ryder Cup. In addition, a number of other costs were incurred that directly supported the Ryder Cup project, but would have been incurred to a greater or lesser extent in the normal run of business—for example, investment in golf development and promoting golf tourism. Beyond that, the Ryder Cup provided an immovable timeline for other long-term projects such as the redevelopment of Newport rail station, improvements to the local road infrastructure, and improvements to the centre of Newport as part of the wider regeneration scheme. These investments will leave a lasting legacy.

It would be remiss of me not to refer to the major investment made by Sir Terry Matthews. His contribution was crucial and will undoubtedly contribute to the economy of Wales for many years to come. In return, and beyond the golf tourism benefits that we have already seen, the event has benefitted local businesses, from caterers to construction and engineering companies to hotels and printers. Welsh food and drink producers have also benefitted as local producers were used wherever possible. We ensured a Wales feel to the event with our branding, food offering and suppliers. The full economic impact study is under way, covering the event week itself, and, together with the Deputy First Minister and the Minister for Heritage, I met officials earlier today to discuss how to build on the success of the work to date, and the event itself, to deliver long-term tourism, economic and golf-development benefits and to look at how we did. We will look at how we can build on its success for the future of Wales in the context of the economic renewal plan and the launch of the major events strategy.

Beyond that, how do you measure the goodwill that the event generated for Wales? The 'Welcome to Wales’ event set the tone for the week and banked an enormous amount of goodwill, which came in useful when working with partners to meet the challenges of the weather later in the week. Along with the Ryder Cup itself, 'Welcome to Wales’ generated a global profile of a level that Wales had not had before. The television coverage of the matches was estimated to have reached millions of homes across the globe, and the event was covered by journalists from around the world.

Finally, I have a few words for the 80 or so staff who helped to deliver the event, many of whom did not see a ball struck. Staff from a range of Assembly Government departments and external bodies worked tirelessly together to deliver a real 'Team Wales’ success story. My thanks go to them as well as to all of Sir Terry’s team at the Celtic Manor Resort and, in particular, the green-keeping staff. As Colin Montgomerie said at the closing ceremony,

'the world was watching and Wales delivered’.