Peredur Owen Griffiths: What is the Welsh Government doing to prevent flooding in communities in South Wales East?
Peredur Owen Griffiths: Thank you, Llywydd. I'm very pleased to speak in this debate today on behalf of the Finance Committee.
Peredur Owen Griffiths: Tax-raising powers, including the ability to create new taxes, are essential tools for governments to use as a means of raising revenue to support spending for public services and to influence behavioural change. The Wales Act 2014 devolved fiscal powers to the Senedd for the first time, including conferring tax powers to replace stamp duty land tax, landfill tax, as well as the ability to...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: I'm pleased and grateful to have the opportunity to respond to the statement today.
Peredur Owen Griffiths: The well-being of future generations Act has been lauded internationally, and rightfully so. It's a groundbreaking piece of legislation that has the potential to transform our country for the better. Who could argue with legislation that enshrines seven cross-cutting well-being goals of prosperity, resilience, health, equality, cohesive communities, a vibrant culture with a thriving Welsh...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: How is the Government working to improve public transport?
Peredur Owen Griffiths: Dementia is a cruel, cruel disease that has a huge impact on thousands of families across Wales. I know about its devastating impact through my own family as my great aunt had dementia. We will hear many personal and powerful stories shared during this debate, so to complement that, I wanted to focus on what the third sector organisations had to say about what could be done to help improve...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: I thank Luke for bringing this debate before us today, and I'm very pleased to take part in the debate.
Peredur Owen Griffiths: I'm pleased to speak in this debate today on behalf of the Finance Committee.
Peredur Owen Griffiths: In the previous Senedd, the Minister told the Finance Committee that she was seeking additional funding from the UK Government to address coal tip safety in Wales. In response to that request, the then Chief Secretary to the Treasury said that the Welsh Government is more than adequately funded to manage future costs as part of its normal budget planning. However, it seems that this is an...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: As far as Plaid Cymru is concerned, social care is highly skilled work, and should be treated as such in terms of pay and conditions. It is unfair and unjust that social care workers are not given the respect that they deserve. You may remember, last week, I raised the changes to day-care provision for disabled adults in Caerphilly county borough, from the perspective of the families they...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: These are all things that would contribute towards making a fairer, more prosperous and happier Wales. I'm sure that it will be problematic for some in this Chamber to support any steps that would help to create a better working week for ordinary people, and we know who those people are. However, I do call on you today who believe in workers' rights and see yourselves as being progressive...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: I'm very grateful to have an opportunity to contribute to this debate today on such an important topic. A four-day working week has the potential to be transformational for Wales, and we should support the idea for a number of reasons. COVID has given us an opportunity to build a better economy that works for the people of Wales, and we should embrace this opportunity to be innovative. A...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: 'a brave and progressive approach to policy making and long-term thinking that puts diversity, the well-being economy, tackling emissions and biodiversity loss, and life-long learning at the forefront of our minds.' On the subject of the future generations commissioner, I'm aware of work by her office, in partnership with the think tank Autonomy, relating to a four-day week and a universal...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: Diolch. During the recent Senedd elections, there was some innovative use of technology in one constituency around the way in which the voting was marked on the register. Traditionally, the record of who has voted has been done by pen and paper, but this was carried out on tablets by polling station staff in Blaenau Gwent. For the avoidance of any doubt, I'm referring to the record of who has...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: 1. What steps is the Welsh Government taking to encourage the use of technology in Welsh elections? OQ56891
Peredur Owen Griffiths: Diolch yn fawr, acting Presiding Officer. A diolch ichi, Weinidog. I welcome this update on the future of optometry in Wales. There are fewer things more precious than sight and we should never underestimate the difference a well-run service can have on people's lives. I'm pleased to hear from the statement that there is work going on to upskill optometrists to enable them to work at the top...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: I must also declare an interest: I'm a community councillor in Penyrheol, Trecenydd and Energlyn. I want to highlight the reduced day-care provision for disabled adults in Caerphilly County Borough. For some, hours have been reduced from 30 hours a week to just six, an 80 per cent reduction in support that has been devastatingly detrimental for disabled adults and their families. The Plaid...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: Since 2012, Plaid Cymru has continually called for increased public procurement, a policy we featured once again in our most recent manifesto. We want to increase Welsh firms' share of contracts from 52 per cent to 75 per cent of the public procurement budget. It is estimated that this would create 46,000 additional jobs and safeguard many existing jobs in the Welsh economy. That is a...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: Thank you very much, Dirprwy Lywydd, and thank you very much for that update from the Minister today. I very much welcome the recognition that there has been work over the summer with key partners to refine the proposals within the early draft of the Bill. There is a great deal within the draft that we welcome in general, and Plaid Cymru has promoted local procurement for several years as a...