Jack Sargeant: Diolch yn fawr, Llywydd. Could I just start by thanking the Member for Clwyd South for his kind words—Ken Skates—and also for his work as a Minister to date on the community bank, and the Minister who is responsible now, Jane Hutt, for her commitment to date? Minister, as you have know, I've long championed for a community bank in Buckley in my constituency. Can you update the Chamber on...
Jack Sargeant: I thank the Counsel General for that answer, and I'm very grateful for your obvious commitment—and long-standing commitment—to social justice. In your conversations with the legal profession in Wales, what references have been made to the legal aid cuts, and do you agree with me that the UK Government cuts mean it is far harder for most people, particularly working class people, to get...
Jack Sargeant: Diolch, Llywydd, and Llywydd, you will know I'm a very proud White Ribbon ambassador, and I am passionate about spreading the message that all men should make, and importantly, mean the White Ribbon promise. I know that you yourself, and other members of the Commission, both past and present, are powerful champions for this cause, and, as you've said, you often support the cause and have done...
Jack Sargeant: Diolch yn fawr, Llywydd, and I'm honoured to be the vice-chair of the cross-party group on steel. It's an extremely important sector for Wales and across the United Kingdom and I do thank the Minister for bringing this statement forward today. The Minister will know we have a proud tradition of steel production in my constituency of Alyn and Deeside and we celebrate 125 years of steel...
Jack Sargeant: 1. Will the Minister make a statement on Welsh Government support for businesses in Alyn and Deeside? OQ56721
Jack Sargeant: 5. Will the Minister make a statement on access to GP services in Alyn and Deeside? OQ56720
Jack Sargeant: Thank you for that answer, Minister, and thank you for the support to date. Minister, previous Welsh Labour Governments have had a strong focus on apprenticeships, a fact I should know better than most as a time-served engineer. We must train the next generation in order to deliver a green recovery and to develop the green products of the future. The Minister will know I want to see a green...
Jack Sargeant: I thank the Minister for that answer. Access to GP services is an increasing issue in Alyn and Deeside, and this has been highlighted in recent weeks—twice, actually—at St Mark's surgery in Connah's Quay, where there is clearly a shortage of doctors, and in Queensferry, where residents are seeing their practice being moved, or potentially being moved, to Connah's Quay, because the current...
Jack Sargeant: How will the Welsh Government’s proposal for a community bank generate investment in Welsh communities?
Jack Sargeant: I think, for the record, I'll state that I'm a proud trade union member, and I would consider people in this Chamber, Members in this Chamber, reflecting on some of the comments made during today's contributions, because in fact it was trade unions like Unite Wales in my constituency who supported Airbus and saved hundreds of jobs at Airbus throughout the pandemic, whilst the UK Conservative...
Jack Sargeant: Diolch yn fawr, Llywydd. Llywydd, last Friday was World Suicide Prevention Day. For many of us, this day is one that brings challenges but also one that brings determination and hope—hope that, together, we can raise awareness of how we can create a world where fewer people die by suicide. The latest statistics show that, in 2018 in the UK and the Republic of Ireland, more than 6,800 people...
Jack Sargeant: The leader of the opposition spoke about consensus at the start of this debate and I agree with him: we do need to find consensus. You won't hear me say this often, but I thank the Welsh Conservatives for bringing this debate forward today—[Laughter.] But, Deputy Llywydd, I recently met with Mark King from the Oliver King Foundation, who are campaigning for a life-saving defibrillator in...
Jack Sargeant: Trefnydd, on Friday, I will be attending the 125th birthday celebration of Tata Steel in my own constituency. My community is built on steel, as you well know, and I'm incredibly proud of that. Now, the future of steel production is low carbon, locally produced steel, and Shotton Steel should be right at the forefront of that process. Can we have a statement, a Welsh Government statement,...
Jack Sargeant: 5. Will the Counsel General make a statement on how the current devolution settlement enables the Welsh Government to promote workers' rights? OQ56861
Jack Sargeant: Well, I'm grateful to the Counsel General for that answer, and as he is, I'm a proud member of a trade union. I think we all should be, and I'll just point that out to my colleagues on the corner benches. [Laughter.] But the Counsel General will know that I have spoken before in this Chamber about the importance and the need to use the social partnership Bill to empower workers and trade...
Jack Sargeant: I'm very grateful to speak in this debate this afternoon. And it is often said that ideas have their moment—a moment in time when it makes sense to pursue them. Now, as someone who specialised in change management in my previous role as an engineer, it was my job to understand when that moment was and how to bring people around to change. That is the view I hold for the idea of a four-day...
Jack Sargeant: Llywydd, I am happy to support the Welsh Government's amendments, if they do feel they need time to capture evidence and look at trials before acting, because we must get this right. But I will say to the Government: in supporting your route to this rather than straight towards a trial, I would expect real commitment to taking this forward, and for the civil service to swiftly swing into...
Jack Sargeant: Well, I'm very glad that my work on fairness has been of keen interest to the Member for Brecon and Radnorshire. The problem you have, I think, on the benches over there, as I said before—. Your colleague put it quite simply in his contribution that he doesn't care about the past, the only concerns are the future. The issue you have—[Interruption.] The issue you have with that is the...
Jack Sargeant: Would the Member give way?
Jack Sargeant: I appreciate that, Gareth. I was just interested, when you read the Trades Union Congress briefing, whether you considered actually joining a union—[Interruption.]—as the unions are the lifelines of so many workers and working-class people in Wales.
