Gareth Bennett: Thanks to Lee for instigating the debate. Yes, there are long-term health benefits of physical activity, which could also translate into long-term financial benefits, if, that is, we can reduce conditions such as obesity and diabetes. I acknowledge that the Welsh Government is now attempting a more joined-up approach to this issue, which inevitably crosses over the boundaries of several...
Gareth Bennett: Thanks, Minister, for your earlier answers, and I was pleased that you mentioned the Wales coastal path, which we’ve had since 2012, and that’s a great step forward. But, of course, many of the near 900 miles are blighted by coastal erosion, which was also mentioned in an earlier debate today—or question. I wondered what measures you could take to maintain access to the paths in light...
Gareth Bennett: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. We in UKIP Wales also note the Welsh Government’s intention to revoke right to buy here in Wales. We also see right to buy as a valuable opportunity for home ownership, and of course we support more house building, if, of course, the houses can be built in the right places. However, although we support the Conservative proposal, we do have several...
Gareth Bennett: Thanks, Minister, for your statement today. The statement is in some ways welcome, as the new Minister for local government is at least appearing to be more consultative in his approach than his predecessor. We also have more clarity on the council elections next May, and, more importantly for council workers, a degree more clarity on the future shape of local government in Wales. However, as...
Gareth Bennett: Yes, sure.
Gareth Bennett: Perhaps they have overcompensated in that instance. Maybe they should have struck a balance somewhere in the middle. [Assembly Members: ‘Ah.’]
Gareth Bennett: There was also something, I believe, in the previous Assembly, called a delivery unit. It’s no longer with us, as far as I know. It appears to have delivered nothing, as very few targets were met, and was thus itself delivered into oblivion. So, now, the targets have largely disappeared, and what we are left with is a catalogue of vague ambitions and no means of monitoring how far we can...
Gareth Bennett: I don’t want to labour the issue of the lack of pages, because Julie’s already taken umbrage with that, but even if we accept it’s only 16 pages long, even within its small size, there is a certain lack of content within it. I wasn’t here five years ago, but I’m told that the equivalent document then was 600 pages long. That does seem to indicate a certain shortcoming in some area.
Gareth Bennett: I’m sure we all applaud the efforts of the Welsh athletes who competed in Rio, in both the Olympics and the Paralympics, whether they won medals or not, and I’m sure that the homecoming will be a great occasion. The Minister refers, in his final paragraph, to the fact that sporting excellence begins with participation at grass-roots level, which other Members have alluded to earlier...
Gareth Bennett: Thank you, Minister; thank you for that acknowledgement that there may be a role in the Assembly for that debate. I further note that a large part of the EU legislation in this area—sorry to labour the point—was driven by Germany and Denmark, which had few available landfill sites. In the UK, we have many disused quarries and gravel pits, so we simply don’t need to comply with these...
Gareth Bennett: Thank you, Minister, for that statement. I appreciate that you see a separation between your own powers and the jurisdiction of the local authorities. However, we could perhaps take more of a leading role in the Assembly in this kind of area. I note that a lot of the impetus to reduce rubbish collection was to comply with EU targets on recycling and landfill. As we are now seemingly set to...
Gareth Bennett: Diolch, Lywydd. The Minister is probably aware that we’re facing a problem in the UK regarding waste collection. In short, there’s a lot of rubbish lying around. In Wales, we have Conwy council rolling out a four-weekly collection, but this kind of scheme has already failed across the border in Bury in greater Manchester. So, how does the Minister view these four-weekly collection cycles?
Gareth Bennett: I find it slightly strange that there are two Members here clamouring for an extra tier of bureaucracy. I don’t think it’s necessary. We had a recent attempt to introduce a directly elected mayor in Cardiff by a Labour councillor, Ashley Govier. It pretty much died due to lack of popular support. So, I would welcome what the Minister actually has said so far. If he could just further...
Gareth Bennett: I thank the Minister for her statement. The active travel plan is a good initiative in terms of its objectives. There could be long-term savings in the NHS budget if people in Wales are basically fit, as Dai Lloyd asserted, and, ideally, physical activity should be nurtured from an early age. On these principles I think we agree. The problem lies, as ever, in how well the aims of the active...
Gareth Bennett: While I understand the wish of Members here to facilitate the arrival of more refugees, we must also acknowledge that there is widespread concern in the UK at the number of economic migrants who are attempting to arrive in the UK under the guise of being refugees. [Interruption.] This will be about refugees. What I would like to ask the First Minister is what measures the Welsh Government can...
Gareth Bennett: Thanks to the Minister for his statement. The success of Welsh teams and performers in the international arena is very welcome and is to be applauded. Such success is a great advert for Wales and will initially have an effect in encouraging greater sporting participation here. There is also much commercial merit in Wales staging major international sporting events. However, there is sometimes...
Gareth Bennett: I won’t go into the issue of what the First Minister did or didn’t say in 2012, but there is an important issue here regarding the overdevelopment of Cardiff and major housing developments that have been proposed and are likely to go ahead that go against the wishes of most of the current residents of the city. Does the First Minister agree that there is a problem with the lack of...
Gareth Bennett: I think that the issue that the Plaid Cymru member raised are perhaps important ones. Transparency is paramount. Now, we know that lobbying exists in reality, in political circles, but we do have to make sure that it’s done legitimately, and we need to know who’s lobbying who at times. Are there any plans to establish a register of lobbyists here in Cardiff Bay?
Gareth Bennett: I’m just coming to the end, so, sorry. Their energy costs are relatively much lower than ours. So, we must look to regain control of our steel industry from the tentacles of EU bureaucracy, but we also need to legislate sensibly at home. Thank you.
Gareth Bennett: Go on. Go ahead, then.
