Gareth Davies: I appreciate that answer, Minister. The vast majority of problems facing today's Wales can be addressed by having more scientists, engineers and mathematicians. Mathematicians have devised better surgery scheduling in order to eliminate cancelled operations. We need more doctors, radiographers and lab technicians in order to tackle our horrendous waiting lists, and if we are to address...
Gareth Davies: I myself read the HIW quality check report this morning, and what it contained was shocking—truly shocking. And I am deeply concerned for the safety of my constituents in the Vale of Clwyd, and I'm also concerned for my constituents working on the front line in Ysbyty Glan Clwyd. Both patients and staff have been badly let down by the hospital and the health board's leadership over the last...
Gareth Davies: Thank you very much, Deputy Llywydd. I'd like to thank everyone who's taken part in the debate this afternoon on such a vitally important topic. Childhood and adolescent mental health services have been severely stretched for many years, but the problems have been compounded by the pandemic, which has been widely referred to during today's debate, both in terms of waiting times, but also in...
Gareth Davies: Yes, of course.
Gareth Davies: Yes, I was actually paying attention, but it was to highlight the actual need for the review into CAMHS services, which has been long delayed and is well overdue. So, Minister, I'd really welcome some urgency on that CAMHS review, and be keen to hear a statement from yourself in due course as to how you're getting on with that. As mentioned, James mentioned personal experiences, which was...
Gareth Davies: Diolch yn fawr iawn, Deputy Llywydd, and it's me again. I've agreed to give a minute of my time to Samuel Kurtz tonight. Over the past few months, I've been surveying my constituents in the Vale of Clwyd to ascertain their biggest concerns, as well as their key priorities for the Senedd as we emerge from the pandemic. One of the most startling themes to emerge was the sheer number of...
Gareth Davies: As someone who worked on the front line of our NHS for over a decade, I can personally attest to the enormous strain our health and care systems have been under. And when a deadly virus has thrown into the mix, it's a sheer miracle that the system didn't break. But that’s only thanks to the dedication of my former colleagues in the NHS, not because of any leadership from the top. The vast...
Gareth Davies: Thank you very much for your statement this afternoon, Deputy Minister. And, whilst I welcome the statement and the publication of the learning disability strategic action plan, I'm afraid the plan is once again a set of aspirations and warm words, not a plan in any real sense of the word. What the document you published shows is that the Welsh Government has identified some of the challenges...
Gareth Davies: 5. What discussions has the Minister had with the Minister for Climate Change and Denbighshire County Council regarding funding a replacement for Llannerch bridge between Trefnant and Tremeirchion? OQ58085
Gareth Davies: Thank you for that answer, Minister. As you can imagine, my constituents are extremely frustrated by this situation. Almost a year and a half after the destruction of the historic Llannerch bridge, the communities of Trefnant and Tremeirchion remain isolated from one another, forcing long detours by car and leaving no active travel routes. My constituents don't care about the argument over...
Gareth Davies: I want to thank Jack Sargeant for tabling this important debate this afternoon. I don't totally agree with the entire premise of the motion, but it's still important, at the same time, that we have the debate. I will say from the outset that decarbonisation should be our number one priority, as we're in the middle of a climate emergency, and my constituents are already suffering the effects...
Gareth Davies: I'm not speaking this afternoon to be an apologist for the UK Government. However, I do take issue with Plaid's motion this afternoon and the stance of their puppet masters in the Welsh Government. Wales will not be £1 billion worse off in unreplaced funding over the next three years, nor has the UK Government undermined the Welsh Government's ability to strategically plan spending for the...
Gareth Davies: No. I would have accepted if I was taking an intervention.
Gareth Davies: It was therefore shocking when it not only failed on all counts as Wales once again qualified for structural funds. Even after the EU was expanded by the admission of former Warsaw pact states from the east of Europe, despite billions of euros being pumped into west Wales and the Valleys, our nation was still as poor, or even poorer, than many of the former Soviet bloc countries that had...
Gareth Davies: —our amendment tonight. Thank you very much.
Gareth Davies: Passionate, Llywydd.
Gareth Davies: First Minister, we saw a massive rise in the number of children on a protection register even before the pandemic, so Lord only knows what the situation is truly like now. Because we know that social services are under tremendous strain, short staffed and overworked, we simply don't know what's being missed or who's being missed. We do know that children's social care in Wales is in crisis....
Gareth Davies: Thank you for your statement this afternoon, Minister. The sad reality is that, back in the 1980s and the 1990s, Glan Clwyd Hospital was one of the best-performing hospitals not only in Wales but the UK, so it's sad to see how times have changed, to say the least. I have just a couple of questions this afternoon. Do you honestly believe that these measures you've outlined can deliver...
Gareth Davies: It's no surprise this afternoon that I cannot support the expansion of the Senedd, and therefore I'll be voting against the motion before us tonight; it's not the afternoon now, is it? So, what we have before us tonight is a plan for more politicians, not a plan for better democracy. And we're a young Parliament, and the paint is barely dry on the walls marking our change from the National...
Gareth Davies: Healthcare, unfortunately, in the Vale of Clwyd, is a real mess and has been for many, many years now, as successive Labour Governments have failed to get a grip on recruitment issues. You only have to look at the Betsi Cadwaladr website. I think, currently, it's about seven or eight pages of job vacancies, and most of them, to be honest, are front-line staff who make the change to people's...
