Jane Hutt: Well, I’m glad also that we’ve had another opportunity, in response to your question on the business statement this afternoon, to again make it very clear that tackling hate crime is a significant priority for Welsh Government. Racism will not be tolerated here in Wales. A very strong statement was made by the First Minister yesterday and repeated again this afternoon. Ministers have made...
Jane Hutt: Well, of course, Russell George, there are huge uncertainties as a result of the referendum and the ‘leave’ vote last week. There are huge uncertainties that, of course, the chancellor expressed today, which will undoubtedly have an impact on the Welsh Government and the Welsh Government budget. So, of course, these are issues where we have made clear commitments and delivered on those...
Jane Hutt: Diolch yn fawr, Simon Thomas. I think the six priorities that the First Minister set out in his statement on Friday—those six priorities, again, of protecting jobs, playing a full part in discussions regarding UK withdrawal from the EU—very importantly, as you made the point—ensuring that the UK retains access to the single market, negotiating continued participation in EU programmes...
Jane Hutt: Thank you, Jenny Rathbone. Of course, we have just had a debate—a very full debate—in response to the referendum, and the First Minister made two statements on Friday and, indeed, again yesterday, following our Welsh Government Cabinet meeting, laying out the steps that the Welsh Government is taking. As you are clearly aware, and as has been discussed this afternoon, it will take time to...
Jane Hutt: Diolch, Lywydd. I’ve made several changes to this week’s business in response to last week’s events. Members will be aware that the statement on phase 1 implementation of the Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Act 2016 was issued as a written statement yesterday. Similarly, the oral statements on school governing bodies, flood and coastal erosion risk management, and the...
Jane Hutt: Thank you very much, Julie Morgan, the Member for Cardiff North. On you first point, it was very important that you did have the opportunity to highlight the work of the Welsh bone marrow registry. These events here in the Senedd do raise awareness and it was the thousandth collection, as you say, of a matched donor. I want to congratulate the Welsh Blood Service alongside Julie. But also it...
Jane Hutt: Thank you, Darren Millar. You do raise a very sensitive ethical as well as clinical example of the case, which I’m sure you will have raised not only with the health board but with the Cabinet Secretary as well, but it is something that, of course, the Welsh Government will want to respond to in terms of the most updated guidance. On your second question, of course, there are a number of...
Jane Hutt: Thank you, Huw Irranca-Davies. I know questions were put to the Cabinet Secretary last week on the metro, ranging across south-east Wales and westwards and, of course, also very clearly involved in the city region developments and bids not only from south-east Wales but also Swansea and Swansea bay. I know that the Cabinet Secretary will be updating Members more clearly on this. Your second...
Jane Hutt: Thank you, Bethan Jenkins. You’ve raised an important case in your constituency, and I’m sure that you are also taking that forward, raising it with the local authority. It is, of course, post-19, the next stage, the transition that is so important in terms of the range of services that we need to provide to young people with autism. So, this is very relevant to the discussions that are...
Jane Hutt: Thank you, David Rees, for strengthening the comments on social media and the abuse and harassment, and, indeed, the ways in which that can so much undermine and threaten so many people, including, particularly, women, as was said earlier on by Simon Thomas. Your second point on junction 41, which we have visited regularly in this Chamber as those changes and those developments—and the...
Jane Hutt: I think your first response to Joyce Watson’s very important question to me on this business statement is very welcome, a very humane response. And, of course, we will look to ways in which we can, as a Government, consider a response to that BBC report and look at ways in which we can monitor the support that we can give to those unaccompanied children in Wales. So, so very disappointing...
Jane Hutt: Joyce Watson has raised a very important question, and a question that of course does affect us in Wales. I know that local authorities are very mindful, and, of course, there is co-ordination and support from the anti-slavery co-ordinator, and, indeed, from the Welsh Government as well, in terms of ministerial responsibility. But it is something where we know that, in Wales, the support and...
Jane Hutt: Thank you very much, Simon Thomas. I think we also, I’m sure, would want to thank the speedy response from the police, who I’m sure have contacted all of us, but also from the Llywydd and her officials in terms of the opportunities with the police to have sessions for all Assembly Members and to make sure that we are safe and can continue to represent our constituents in the way that we...
Jane Hutt: Well, I thank the Member for that question, because it provides me with the opportunity to confirm that work’s under way to determine how fast and how best we can get superfast broadband to as many of the final few per cent of homes and businesses as possible. Of course, the eventual solutions will be very much dependent on the location and circumstances of the premises involved. I think...
Jane Hutt: Diolch, Lywydd. I’ve made two changes to this week’s business: today’s business now also includes oral statements on the public local inquiry on the M4 at Newport, and broadcasting in Wales. And business for the next three weeks is as shown on the business statement and announcement, found among the meeting papers available to Members electronically.
Jane Hutt: I thank Nick Ramsay very much for those questions. Of course, he’s been a strong advocate for his constituency of Monmouthshire and Monmouth in recognising the importance, particularly to Monmouthshire, of the metro. You’ve raised this on many occasions and we’ve had updates or statements to the Assembly, and of course in due course the Minister for economy and infrastructure will want...
Jane Hutt: I thank Julie Morgan for raising that again, following Simon Thomas’s questions to the business statement earlier on, and, again, how important it was that we were there—members of the Government as well as Assembly Members—to listen to those powerful messages and to hear from those who have been affected by that hate crime, and also to see a very good article in the ‘Western Mail’...
Jane Hutt: Andrew R.T. Davies, I completely understand the concerns that constituents and residents have about the state of their roads and their local roads. We know that that’s an issue that’s raised with all of us as Assembly Members. I’m very proud of the fact that it’s a Welsh Labour Government that worked with local government to develop the local government borrowing initiative, which...
Jane Hutt: Well, I know Jeremy Miles’s interest in the work of the Welsh Co-operative and Mutuals Commission, of course chaired by Professor Andrew Davies, a former Member of this Senedd. It reconvened last year, in February of last year, to take stock of how the recommendations are being implemented. All Ministers then, obviously, had to respond. They reported on their findings earlier this year—in...
Jane Hutt: Well, I’m very happy to provide the leader of UKIP, Neil Hamilton, the clarification of how we do manage this, how we have managed this in this Senedd, and to offer you every courtesy, as I do to all business managers. Hard copies of our oral statements are circulated to party business managers through their offices, as close to 1 o’clock on Plenary days as possible—I think business...
