John Griffiths: How will the Welsh Government continue to work with environmental organisations to safeguard and enhance the natural environment?
John Griffiths: Diolch, Llywydd. I am pleased to open today’s debate on the Equality, Local Government and Communities Committee report on rough-sleeping. I’d like to thank those who provided evidence to our inquiry, including the staff and volunteers we met at projects in Newport and Cardiff. We were struck by their dedication, compassion and positivity. They told us they never give up on those who need...
John Griffiths: I’d also like to thank those who shared their first-hand experiences and moving accounts of how they ended up sleeping rough. Many included a catalogue of events that even the most resilient amongst us would struggle to endure. Thankfully, they have been supported off the street and are making plans for the future, and we wish them well. Dirprwy Lywydd, the heavy snowfall, biting wind and...
John Griffiths: One of the key areas we considered as part of our inquiry was the causes of rough-sleeping. These are wide-ranging and include a combination of structural and personal factors. We focused on the two main structural causes: welfare reform and a lack of affordable housing. Changes to benefit entitlements, the increase in sanctions and the introduction of universal credit are having a profound...
John Griffiths: Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd. May I thank Members for their contributions and echo comments already made that it's particularly good to have contributions from Members who are not sitting on our committee? May I begin, then, with Janet Finch-Saunders and recognise Janet's right to differ on some points, but nonetheless thank Janet for her contribution to the report in general? Of course, it is...
John Griffiths: Leader of the house, in terms of the Equality, Local Government and Communities Committee report and the responses Welsh Government has made, I wonder if you could provide further detail and assurance with regard to a few matters. Firstly, the community cohesion plan: the response from Welsh Government was that that would be published in summer 2017 and would include specific actions in terms...
John Griffiths: Very quickly. The draft consultation plan doesn't always include time frames for delivery, so I wonder whether the finalised plan will have clear dates for delivery of each action, and whether there will be Welsh Government funding allocated to the commitments made in the draft action plan. Diolch.
John Griffiths: Llywydd, I very much welcome this debate today as well, which is very, very important for health in Wales and quality of life in Wales, and there are practical things that can be done. One thing I've mentioned previously, for example, is the possibility of having LPG conversions for taxi fleets, which would be one important and significant contribution to improving air quality in our...
John Griffiths: It is very difficult to understand, really, how we got from that meeting here with Charles Hendry some time ago now, where there was such positive cross-party support for the tidal lagoon in Swansea bay and tidal lagoons further afield in Wales. In fact, I can remember Charles Hendry saying how struck he was by the strength and depth of that cross-party support, and yet here we are today with...
John Griffiths: Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd. I do very much agree that it is a test of our new democracy here in Wales how we counter the discrimination and prejudice that Gypsy, Traveller and Roma communities face, and I guess many of us who are familiar with issues around proposed local sites in our constituencies will understand the level of suspicion and, unfortunately, ignorance that often exists. And I just...
John Griffiths: 3. What further steps will the Welsh Government take to reduce levels of smoking? OAQ52406
John Griffiths: Cabinet Secretary, the Welsh Government smoking ban has helped reduce smoking, but it remains the leading cause of serious illness and avoidable early deaths in Wales, responsible, according to Action on Smoking and Health, for around 5,500 deaths every year, and the Welsh Government's target of reducing smoking prevalence to 16 per cent by 2020 will not be achieved on current projections....
John Griffiths: I wanted to also mention some examples of the difficulties that homeowners are facing in Wales, because in my own constituency of Newport East I recently met with a delegation from a prestige riverside housing development, where there are 81 leaseholders who, shortly after purchasing, found that their ground rents would double every 10 years, which wasn't brought to their attention when they...
John Griffiths: What strategy will the Welsh Government follow to improve community safety in Wales?
John Griffiths: 5. What level of priority is given to the education portfolio in deciding Welsh Government spending commitments? OAQ52531
John Griffiths: 7. What progress is being made in achieving the Welsh Government's policy objectives for greater equality in Wales? OAQ52532
John Griffiths: Cabinet Secretary, I do understand that it's incredibly difficult to allocate funding in this age of austerity and all the pressures that involves. Nonetheless, I do believe that education should have a bigger share of the Welsh Government's budget than is currently the case. I believe that would be very much in line with the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015, because greater...
John Griffiths: Cabinet Secretary, we are lucky to live in a diverse Wales with many different ethnic minorities. There are, of course, issues of inequality amongst those communities and also with regard to the protected characteristics, and there is rightly a strong focus on those, but I believe social class is also a very important aspect of inequality in Wales and it actually cuts across the protected...
John Griffiths: Diolch, Llywydd. I’m very pleased to open today’s debate on our committee report. I would like to start by thanking all those who contributed to our inquiry, either by giving written or oral evidence, but in particular those people who participated in our focus groups. Hearing from them about the challenges of insecure work, low pay and accessing the welfare system really focused our...
John Griffiths: Closely linked to this are our continuing concerns that the lack of a dedicated tackling poverty strategy will hamper the Welsh Government’s intentions to deliver prosperity for all. Recommendation 1 in this report is a repeat of our recommendation from our Communities First report, calling for such a strategy. Reflecting on the evidence we heard throughout the course of this inquiry, we...
