Darren Millar: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer, and thank you, Minister, for your statement. I have to say that I'm disappointed with much of what you said. There was a lot of criticism of the Conservative Party, which, of course, has been a party that has tried, as much as it possibly can, to have delivered Brexit and gotten a withdrawal deal through the House of Commons. You've said that you don't...
Darren Millar: Can I call for a statement from the Minister for Health and Social Services in relation to hospice care for children here in Wales? The business manager may well be aware that there was a recent report by Healthcare Inspectorate Wales called 'How are healthcare services meeting the needs of young people?' and in that report it made a very clear recommendation that the Welsh Government need to...
Darren Millar: I was very pleased, First Minister, to see, as a result of the UK Government's investment in the rail network, the re-establishment of direct rail links between north Wales and the north-west of England via the Halton curve—[Interruption.] Via the Halton Curve. This has been something that I've long championed in this Chamber, first raising questions on the matter with the former First...
Darren Millar: I move.
Darren Millar: Can I join you and others in this Chamber in condemning utterly Islamophobia of any kind and religious intolerance of any kind? Because it is pervasive, unfortunately, in our society, and it's happening; we see it, and it's completely unacceptable. I think the one issue that we do need to reflect on with this particular definition is that, of course, it's not been widely adopted as yet, and I...
Darren Millar: I'm sure, like me, you'll want to thank the UK Government for raising concerns about human rights abuses in Turkey. You've quite rightly said that this is a non-devolved matter, but one thing about Turkey is that we've obviously got a significant Turkish diaspora here in Wales, and I think it is important that we use the opportunities that are there in terms of those links with the Turkish...
Darren Millar: I'm very pleased to hear about the ambassadorial welcome that you're going to give later in June, because I think that these relationships are incredibly important to raising the profile of Wales, not just in Japan but in wider Asia and the world as you've already mentioned. You'll be aware that cherry trees are being planted across Wales at the moment, as part of the Japan-UK initiative. In...
Darren Millar: You've already made mention of the fact that we have those opportunities later this year. We've got, of course, the UK-Japan Season of Culture, which is also coming up, including events that are going to be held here in Wales. One of the other things that we've got in common, of course, with Japan is that we're both nations with monarchs, and I'm sure you'd want to congratulate Emperor...
Darren Millar: Diolch yn fawr, Llywydd. Minister, can I ask you about the relationship between Wales and Japan? You've already hinted at the fact that we've got the Rugby World Cup coming up later this year. What action has the Welsh Government taken already to prepare for engagement during the Rugby World Cup in Japan?
Darren Millar: One of the reasons that cash often isn't allocated to different local authorities is, of course, the lack of proactivity in applications coming forward from those local authorities when Government funds are available for distribution. What work is the Welsh Government doing to make sure that local authorities and other partners do actually make the applications for funding when these cash...
Darren Millar: Can I call for a statement from the Minister responsible for heritage on Welsh religious buildings? I read with dismay in the media over the weekend about the potential alternative use of the Norwegian church here in Cardiff Bay, which, of course, is a historic church, not just for the Norwegian community, but also internationally because it's the oldest Norwegian church actually outside of...
Darren Millar: Diolch, Llywydd. First Minister, I'm sure you'll want to join me in wishing everybody every success in the GCSE exams, which are currently under way—in particular, my own son, who is taking his GCSEs this year. You'll be aware that the Children, Young People and Education Committee published a report last year on the availability of textbooks—or should I say the lack of availability of...
Darren Millar: One of the huge opportunities that our natural resources afford us is recreational opportunities that are linked in with the ambitious plans to improve tourism here in Wales. Our forests, I think, are one part of our natural resources that are underutilised for tourism and recreation purposes. We're very fortunate in north Wales, both in the Llandegla forest and in and around the Clocaenog...
Darren Millar: Minister, the red squirrel is the species that I'm the species champion of, and I'm very fortunate to have a good red squirrel population in the Clocaenog forest in my own constituency and, indeed, a breeding centre in the Welsh Mountain Zoo in Colwyn Bay. But the red squirrel population has fallen to about 1,500 red squirrels across Wales at the moment. Most of them are on the isle of...
Darren Millar: 7. Will the Minister make a statement on the Welsh Government's national strategy for the management of natural resources? OAQ53841
Darren Millar: Will you take an intervention?
Darren Millar: I could have listed any one of those and it would have been absolutely identical. And we were assured in north Wales that when that report was published into the failings at Tawel Fan, it would be the last of its kind because you would get to grips with those problems. You made statement after statement in the aftermath of the publication of the Tawel Fan report that things would change, that...
Darren Millar: I rise with a very, very heavy heart today. We read last week—I can hear the huffs of breath on the benches opposite, and I'm very disappointed by that. I sincerely mean that I rise with a very, very heavy heart. Last week, we saw the publication of another stomach-churning report into failings in our precious national health service. In that report, we read about front-line staff that were...
Darren Millar: I'm here to ask questions of this Government that serves the people of Wales. And I think that it's very important that people recognise the failures of your Government, and previous administrations, to properly manage the European funds that were at their disposal. We've gone backwards in terms of our wage growth when compared to—as a proportion—other parts of the UK. And I find it...
Darren Millar: I'm grateful for the update. I note that the membership of this steering committee is not in the public domain. I don't know who the other members are and I think it would be very useful if the Welsh Government could share that information with Members, to ensure that it is a properly representative committee that will seriously look at the failings of the previous use of structural funds in...
