The Prince of Wales recalled fond memories of the years he and his wife spent living in Wales as newlyweds as he hailed the “dynamic nation” yesterday. Speaking at an investment summit designed to encourage foreign companies to fund new ventures in the devolved nation, William said one of Wales’s greatest strengths is “the way industry, academia and government work together.”

Addressing an audience that included Chancellor Rachel Reeves on Monday, he said: “Wales was the first place Catherine and I made our home together - on the island of Anglesey. “When you make a home in Wales, you join a family of three million people, and the sense of warmth and belonging is what makes Wales unlike anywhere else.

“I am pleased to be continuing the work of my father, The King who over half a century ago, personally encouraged the co-founder of Sony to open its first European factory here in Wales.” Charles, who was the longest-serving Prince of Wales, holding the title for 64 years, handed the title to his son following Queen Elizabeth’s death in September 2022.

William, 43, told investors that Wales was an ideal location for “cutting-edge technology, research, innovation and a skilled workforce”.

Speaking in front of 300 delegates from 25 countries who were attending the one-day summit at the International Convention Centre in Newport, the prince said: “I believe that we have reached a significant moment for Welsh investment. An opportunity defined not by the challenges we collectively face, but by extraordinary possibilities.

“One of Wales’s greatest strengths is the way industry, academia, and government work together. Not in isolation, but as part of a single, connected community.

“It is collaboration at its very best. Practical, purposeful, and grounded in trust… Wales is a place where cutting-edge technology, research, innovation and a skilled workforce come together in a single, coherent ecosystem across many different industries.

“It is my honour to play my part in championing the dynamic nation Wales is today as we look to the future.”

Afterwards, William spoke to business leaders about their products, saying that Wales could become a “test bed” for new ideas.

The Welsh business showcase is said to be the most significant event hosted by Wales since the 2014 Nato summit with 250 companies due to attend, 150 of which are new investors to the country.

William visited stands promoting innovative and environmental businesses in Wales, including Mark Williams from Limb Art.
The 53-year-old told the prince how his company was inspired by his own story which began when he lost his left leg after being hit by a car while riding his bike as a child on June 21, 1982.

Mr Williams, a former Team GB Paralympic swimmer, said: “He said that’s my birthday and I said ‘I know’. They rushed me into Glenclude Hospital in North Wales. And the surgeon came out to speak to my parents that evening and said he had some good news and some bad news. The good news is; King Charles and Prince Diana, have just had a baby boy, which was Prince William. And the bad news is we can't save Mark's leg.”

His Limb Art business developed almost accidentally after he made a cast for himself - a replica of his “good leg” - and posted about it on social media. Soon afterwards he was inundated with requests to make them for others.

It became so successful he left his job to focus on his business and he now makes them for children as young as 4, designing them to make the wearer feel more confident in public. 

Looking at a display of his work, including one featuring his father’s face, which was created to mark the King’s 2023 coronation, the prince said that they just looked like any other “crazy socks”.

Before joining the summit, the prince visited KLA, an international semiconductor company based in Newport, South Wales, where he viewed their new site.

It is Prince William’s second visit to Wales in as many weeks. Last week he went to North Wales to visit a marine conservation group and hear how young people were overcoming mental health challenges at the Youth Shedz project.

William and Catherine lived in Anglesey from 2010 to 2013 when he was stationed at RAF Valley while serving as a search and rescue helicopter pilot.