Joel James: Thank you, Trefnydd. As you know, the most recent update in NICE guidelines concerning the eligibility for flash and continuous glucose monitoring, CGM, is without a doubt a major step in helping those who live with type 1 diabetes access better technology in managing their blood glucose levels. This is important because not only does it help people manage their lives, and in particular their...
Joel James: Thank you, Llywydd. Deputy Minister, I wanted to pick up, if I may, a few things today in relation to the Social Partnership and Public Procurement (Wales) Bill. According to the draft Bill, one of the overarching objectives is that, and I quote: 'A statutory duty will be placed on certain public bodies to seek consensus or compromise with their recognised trade unions (or where there is no...
Joel James: Thank you, Deputy Minister, for your answer, but I'm conscious of what I've said, that it's most likely that, in most cases, you are going to get that compromise, but I think, with all the will in the world, you will always still get disagreements that cannot be resolved, and, without a proper mechanism in place, I fear that this Bill could have the potential to grind procurement for public...
Joel James: Finally, Deputy Minister, in terms of the social partnership council, as you mentioned in one of your earlier responses, there is concern that the council will not adequately represent the wide and diverse range of views present when providing evidence and advice to the Welsh Government. For example, social enterprises, non-unionised workers, ethnic minority communities, health and social...
Joel James: 1. What are the Welsh Government's plans for the use of hydrogen fuel for automotives in Wales? OQ58713
Joel James: Thank you, First Minister. Despite all the interest surrounding the potential for hydrogen to become a major game changer in decarbonising the automotive industry, we are at present yet to see any real evidence of this on our roads. I, like many here, I'm sure, believe that there's a huge opportunity for green hydrogen to become a major part of the solution in decarbonising the automotive...
Joel James: Thank you, Llywydd. Just two days ago, on 14 November, we commemorated World Diabetes Day, and this year there's been the fantastic announcement by the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and Diabetes UK of a jointly funded early surveillance for auto-immune diabetes study, which is a trial screening programme for type 1 diabetes that has the potential to transform the way the condition is...
Joel James: In my preparation for my remarks today, I was able to speak with a property management company that has quite a number of properties affected by cladding issues in England and in Wales. And though you might not expect this from me, I want to say that they had extremely positive feedback on the application process of the building and safety fund in Wales, and were happy that things were now...
Joel James: Thank you, Deputy Minister, for your statement today, and, if I may, I'd like to pick up on a few points. Firstly, the basis of your proposals is that firefighters are no longer dealing with so many fires and therefore have a greater capacity to help with medical emergencies, but I feel that you have failed to recognise that the drop in the number of fires is due to firefighters doing a very...
Joel James: But that statement wasn't me, that was the report.
Joel James: Minister, as I am sure you are aware, disadvantaged children face a myriad of challenges that do not necessarily exist for most people. One such disadvantage is the availability of internet and appropriate devices at home. The Children's Commissioner for Wales has estimated that a third to perhaps even half of children do not have access to appropriate devices, and that, even when these have...
Joel James: As I'm sure everyone here will agree, it was very pleasing to see that the Minister has accepted all the recommendations made in the committee report, but, to be honest, with such slow progress of this Government in meeting its duty to provide appropriate sites in the last eight years, there is little to be reassured about in terms of what will be different this time. Reading the report, I...
Joel James: First Minister, Cardiff Council have cited a maintenance backlog to the tune of £55 million as a motivating factor behind recent soundings to sell St David's Hall in Cardiff. The systematic failure to provide adequate ongoing maintenance now means that the venue, which hosts cultural and civic occasions, as my colleague Rhys mentioned, that add to Cardiff's prestige as a capital city is...
Joel James: Thank you, Llywydd. Concerning the general principles of this Bill, I think it is fair to say that this Government has completely failed to communicate what problem it is trying to solve and why it is implementing this legislation. The Welsh Government is stating that it wants to put social partnership on a statutory footing to improve public procurement processes, but it's not made any...
Joel James: Thank you, Llywydd. On these grounds, I therefore encourage Members not to support the general principles of this Bill.
Joel James: Thank you, Jack, for bringing this petition forward for debate. In principle, the Welsh Conservatives support this petition. We recognise that protecting this unique area with its exceptional landscape is of national importance. We believe that the Cambrian mountains having area of outstanding natural beauty status will undoubtedly bring benefits to the area, helping to improve recognition...
Joel James: First Minister, this Government's announcement of Wales as the first nation of sanctuary and as a supersponsor created headlines as you demonstrated that Wales was ready and willing to help in doing more than its fair share in aiding people who were fleeing conflict and persecution. However, sadly, it does now seem that Wales was ill prepared for the overwhelming response, and the system has...
Joel James: Thank you, Llywydd. Can the Minister make a statement on how the Welsh Government supports applications to the National Lottery for funding for good causes in Wales, and provide an update on how often the Welsh Government meets with stakeholders to provide oversight for funding distribution? Thank you.
Joel James: Thank you, Minister. It's my understanding that, up until 2020, on the twenty-fifth anniversary of the lottery, Wales had received about £1.75 billion of funding for good causes. Whilst I acknowledge that this is an enormous amount, I'm nonetheless conscious that it only represents around 4 per cent of the total amount of funding provided in the UK, which was in the region of £40 billion....
Joel James: Thank you, Minister. I look forward to receiving your letter. With regard to the change now with the National Lottery to Allwyn Entertainment Ltd, which is scheduled in 2024, has the Welsh Government had any engagement whatsoever with Allwyn Entertainment Ltd with regard to funding distribution in Wales? Do you anticipate any changes to the funding of good causes in Wales as a result of this...
