Llyr Gruffydd: This is a wholly indefensible position from a major company running services with public subsidy—that's what we shouldn't forget. Arriva Buses Wales has enjoyed a near monopoly of services in parts of north Wales over the years, and receiving those subsidies, of course, from Welsh Government indirectly. So, I want to hear a stronger intent from Government in terms of some sort of...
Llyr Gruffydd: With that in mind, the decision of the United Kingdom Government, of course, not to support Wrexham council's bid to the levelling-up fund to renew the Racecourse is a blow to the club and to football more widely, and, indeed, to the region more widely. You will be aware, I know, that Wrexham football club already draws crowds of over 10,000 for home games. The Racecourse is full on...
Llyr Gruffydd: Thank you for that response. I listened carefully to your responses to some previous questions in this area, and you did touch on the question of passing responsibilities down from the Welsh Government to the CJCs, but I didn't necessarily hear your view in terms of those concerns among local authorities that the Government, over time, will add more and more responsibilities that currently...
Llyr Gruffydd: I'm pleased that you've mentioned the budgetary process, because that's my next destination, and I wanted to ask about the broader budget of the Government and your role as Minister for finance. As one who's been part of scrutinising Government budgets quite closely over recent years, one criticism that's come up relatively regularly is that it's difficult to read across from Government...
Llyr Gruffydd: Thank you for that. You referred to the WLGA, and they, of course, have called on the Government to provide the tools and resources to local authorities to baseline and to measure progress at a local level against climate change targets, so that they can do that in an accurate and consistent way across Wales. Now, that, of course, could be the foundation for the creation of local net zero...
Llyr Gruffydd: Thank you very much, Llywydd. In light of COP26 last week, I want to talk abut the role of local government in helping Wales to meet its commitments in terms of cutting carbon emissions, and your role as Minister for local government in that regard. I understand that 16 local authorities have now declared a climate emergency. That's a starting point in a longer process, but it is...
Llyr Gruffydd: 4. Will the Minister make a statement on the responsibilities of the proposed corporate joint committees? OQ57205
Llyr Gruffydd: 2. What discussions has the Minister had with the Minister for Economy regarding infrastructure investment in north Wales? OQ57186
Llyr Gruffydd: Thank you for your statement, Minister. I wasn't really intending to respond to the statement, but I've been sitting here listening intently to what you've had to say, and, fundamentally, nothing has changed, has it, really? You could have delivered that statement 10 years ago, and, in the meantime, of course, we're still culling 10,000 cattle every year. It really smacks of contentment with...
Llyr Gruffydd: Will the First Minister make a statement on the independence of the process of overseeing the Ministerial Code in Wales?
Llyr Gruffydd: One area hasn't been touched upon, and I think it would be remiss of me not to refer to it. I, the Minister and others attended the launch this morning of a report by WWF Cymru, RSPB Cymru and Size of Wales that really drives home, I think, how tackling our domestic footprint in terms of carbon emissions and loss of biodiversity is only part of the problem. I think it's remiss that we hadn't...
Llyr Gruffydd: Thank you very much, Deputy Presiding Officer, and thank you to everyone who's contributed to the debate. It's been a broad-ranging debate, and I think that reflects the breadth of the original motion, but also the amendments tabled to it. Many people have reminded us that we are facing crises in nature and climate, and they are interrelated, and it stands to reason therefore that the...
Llyr Gruffydd: Thank you very much. And of course, in the meantime, it's important that this Government does turn over every stone in order to create the revival that we all want to see. The Federation of Small Businesses, for example, is proposing a package of possible measures that would contribute to that, through using procurement. They also talk about encouraging more start-ups, and including the...
Llyr Gruffydd: Well thank you for that. You've made the point for us, I think, that the UK Government has powers that we don't have in this place to respond to this. And once again, exceptional circumstances, as we're facing at the moment, show how few powers and macroeconomic levers we have here in Wales to be able to respond to different crises. We saw elements of that with regard to the pandemic. The...
Llyr Gruffydd: Diolch yn fawr iawn, Llywydd. It's quite sweet, isn't it, to hear the whingeing from Conservative benches about Plaid Cymru tax policies when they can't even keep their promises when it comes to taxation on a UK level. And it really is a graphic illustration, I think, of the jealous irrelevance of the Members who are allegedly the official opposition—and an official opposition who can't...
Llyr Gruffydd: Now then, Minister, if we can discuss some of the issues that are of real interest to the people of Wales—there are huge challenges facing a number of businesses in Wales at the moment, who are having to cope with a substantial increase in energy costs. And that's having a particular impact on businesses that are intensive users of energy. We are aware of negotiations happening at a UK...
Llyr Gruffydd: The failure of the current protocol is plain for all to see. It's been compared a number of times, hasn't it, to the old legislative competence Orders, which plagued the Senedd back in the late 2000s. They were very rapidly replaced because of concerns over the complexity of the negotiations involved in those, and this arrangement should also be dealt with in a similar way. The protocols have...
Llyr Gruffydd: There are two parts to this motion before us today: first of all, the potential of a vacant land tax, and then, secondly, the deficiencies of the protocol. On the first element, I think there are strong arguments in favour of considering the introduction of a vacant land tax. It would, of course, help to tackle scenarios where large developers abuse the system in order to inflate profits at...
Llyr Gruffydd: Yes, they are working exceptionally hard and have done so not only over the past 18 months, but in light of warnings about a lack of capacity in previous years. Now, six years ago, the Royal College of General Practitioners carried out a survey of GPs in Wrexham and a third of them said that they intended to leave the profession within five years. Six years later, that has come to pass, so do...
Llyr Gruffydd: 3. Will the First Minister make a statement on access to primary health services in North Wales? OQ56982
