Mike Hedges: Whilst supporting the Welsh Government budget, I acknowledge that the budget is inadequate for the needs of Wales. As the Cabinet Secretary said during his speech, there is between £1.1 billion and £4 billion less in expenditure than we actually should have if we'd even just stayed level, in one case in cash terms, and the other one in terms of real-terms increases in line with the...
Mike Hedges: Well, I think if we'd had Jeremy Corbyn and John McDonnell elected in 2017, I don't think there's anybody in this room who doesn't think we'd have a radically different budget. The block grant from the Tories in Westminster is inadequate. As the year progresses, I expect the Conservatives to call for more money for health, more money for education and to oppose any cutbacks that are being...
Mike Hedges: Oh, diolch, Llywydd. [Laughter.] That came as a shock then. Two major areas of Welsh Government expenditure are health and local government. The downside of extra money for health has obviously been less money for local government. Local government finances are under pressure. Local councils have been forward thinking and innovative in dealing with real-term cuts to their budgets, and that's...
Mike Hedges: Yes, certainly.
Mike Hedges: If Mark Isherwood is asking, 'Can we fund every local authority by exactly the same amount per head?', on behalf of Swansea, I say, 'Yes, please.' And I think there'd be people in Cardiff who'd be ecstatic about it, and there'd be problems in other parts of Wales where they'd be less happy. The formula means that it's driven by population, and population demographics, with additional money...
Mike Hedges: 5. Will the Cabinet Secretary make a statement regarding Welsh Government support for forestry in Wales? OAQ51545
Mike Hedges: 4. Will the Cabinet Secretary provide an update on the work of public service boards? OAQ51546
Mike Hedges: Thank you for that statement. As the Minister knows, stakeholders generally feel that the policy direction of the Welsh Government's strategy, 'Woodlands for Wales', is appropriate. In a recent debate on a report by the Climate Change, Environment and Rural Affairs Committee, I raised the importance of increasing access to and community benefits from woodland. What progress has been made on...
Mike Hedges: Thank you for that answer. When public service boards were set up in 2016, one of the objectives was a set objective that was designed to maximise the public services boards’ contribution to the well-being goals. What progress has been made towards achieving this?
Mike Hedges: Council tax in Pembrokeshire has consistently been amongst the lowest in Wales. Council tax is set by all councillors, not only by the executive, in the same way as the amount of money spent here and the amount of money raised here is set by all Assembly Members. Does the Cabinet Secretary agree that council tax rises is a matter for elected councillors, who will answer to local electors for...
Mike Hedges: Hewlett-Packard, of course, started with two people, and Facebook with one, so I don't think the number of people you're starting with is of great importance; the number of people you end up with is the most important. There are three ways of funding: grants or non-repayable loans, as they used to be described, loans and equity. Will the Cabinet Secretary explain why he's chosen equity in...
Mike Hedges: First of all, can I thank Mark Isherwood for his enthusiasm in bringing this debate forward and for what he said up to now on it? There's nothing he said that I disagree with. The good news is that I'm not going to replicate any of it. Firstly, can I say what this debate is not about? It's not about legalising cannabis for recreational use. It is not a legal excuse that someone caught with...
Mike Hedges: I welcome the statement by the Cabinet Secretary. I think we should all welcome that, since November 2016, the industry sales turnover has increased from £6.1 billion to £6.9 billion, and I think we should all be really pleased that we stand on the threshold of the £7 billion target towards sustainable growth in the food and drink action plan, set in 2014, to be reached by 2020—and it...
Mike Hedges: I'm very pleased to take part in what I think is a very important debate today. I would like to start my contribution by making three, I think, non-contentious statements: museums are an important asset to our communities; the national museums are very important to every nation, and Wales is no different; to make them successful, we need well-paid and well-motivated staff who are committed...
Mike Hedges: I think there's a bit of confusion here between the two of us. I was talking in financial terms. I'll ask this question: if the Welsh Government withdrew funding tomorrow, would the museums continue, or would they be forced to close their doors? If they are wholly dependent, or substantially dependent, on the Welsh Government in operational terms, the OCS I'm sure classify them as Welsh...
Mike Hedges: I've got no problem with organisations raising money. The point I'm trying to get across—which I'm obviously failing with—is that these organisations are wholly dependent on Government money. If the Government turns the money off, these organisations close. That is the key to this. So, they can't go about pretending they're private sector organisations for the benefit of themselves....
Mike Hedges: Does the Cabinet Secretary agree with me on the importance of ensuring that all Welsh income tax payers are identified prior to income tax being partially devolved and that we don't want the same difficulties that occurred on income tax devolution in Scotland, where a number of people were misallocated?
Mike Hedges: I welcome the opportunity to debate the Finance Committee's report entitled 'Inquiry into the financial estimates accompanying legislation'. This is a hugely important topic, because money spent in implementing new legislation is money not available for current services. We sometimes debate here as if there's some sort of new money coming from somewhere—perhaps Theresa May's money...
Mike Hedges: I would like to ask for a statement on the Welsh Government's involvement in preparation for the 2021 census. Lower super-output data is used by the Welsh Government for the provision of services such as Flying Start, and it can mean, where areas are non-homogenous, that we can end up with some of the poorest areas left out and some of the richest areas put in. I think it really is...
Mike Hedges: I welcome the opportunity to ask questions on the local government statement. My view, although possibly not held by everyone here, is that we do not discuss local government anywhere near enough. I welcome the proposals to boost the numbers of registered electors, to make it easier for people to cast their votes, and give more people the right to take part. Surely that's what democracy is...
