Sioned Williams: Thirty-six per cent of the councillors elected in the elections in 2022 were women—an increase of 8 per cent since 2017, but far from being where we should be in terms of equality, of course. Although two councils are equal in terms of gender balance, the picture in other areas is unacceptable, where the representation of women is as low as 18 per cent. So, what specific steps is the...
Sioned Williams: 8. What discussions has the Minister held with other governments in order to share good practice in relation to supporting renewable energy? OQ58921
Sioned Williams: Thank you, Minister. Given the need to respond to the climate crisis and the need, as we heard from Cefin Campbell, to increase the energy produced locally, it's good to see that these discussions are ongoing. Until we have a public transport system that is fit for purpose and is cheap to use, car parks will be part of the landscape of every town in Wales, I'm sure. But legislation approved...
Sioned Williams: Thank you, Llywydd. The majority of specialist disability assessments for university students who are eligible for the devolved disabled student allowance are currently held in specialist assessment centres in Wales, who understand the needs of university students in Wales, and the devolved landscape of higher education in Wales. These experts are in assessment centres that are located in the...
Sioned Williams: Thank you very much. Many of us were present at the rally organised by the National Union of Students Wales on the Senedd steps in December, and I know, Minister, that you called by to speak to the students, who told us terrifying stories about their difficulties with the cost of transport, energy bills, rent, food bills, and so on. And I've raised with you before how FE and HE students and...
Sioned Williams: Diolch, Deputy Llywydd. You mentioned in your statement how the programme provides a means of acting on national priorities such as promoting the Welsh language. You know that an outline business case from Neath Port Talbot Council to open a huge new English-medium school in Pontardawe under the twenty-first century schools programme, as it was at that time, was approved by the Welsh...
Sioned Williams: Diolch, Llywydd. This month marks 200 years since the birth of Alfred Russel Wallace, a naturalist whose ideas helped change the world. Born near Usk, he spent much of his early life in England and moved back to Wales to work as a surveyor in Neath. During his spare time, he furthered his scientific pursuits, and, in his autobiography, he referred to the impact his time in Neath had on him,...
Sioned Williams: Thank you, Heledd. Would you agree that one of the cohorts of young people very much affected by the cost of living and the high cost of transport is students? They very often have to live in cities. We know that they sometimes have to live on the outskirts of cities, because rental costs are so high in city centres, and they've told me they're having to travel in then for their courses and,...
Sioned Williams: What is the Welsh Government doing to eliminate health inequalities for women?
Sioned Williams: I certainly echo that call, Minister. Holocaust Memorial Day is dedicated to remembering those who were persecuted and killed because they were marginalised and othered by those in power. The theme of Holocaust Memorial Day, ordinary people, is one that has much to teach us today, as you have referenced, worldwide, and here in Wales. Because while Holocaust Memorial Day ensures we remember...
Sioned Williams: Thank you for your statement, Minister. The census results do show a decline in the percentage of Welsh speakers in almost every area, including for all ages, and among children aged three to 15 in every county in my region. Therefore, it's very important that the broad range of local initiatives that promote the language, especially those that have received investment from Welsh Government,...
Sioned Williams: Thank you for your statement, Minister. Although the UK Government has unveiled a new package of British military aid for Ukraine, the help, as you've mentioned, that they have provided for those who have had to flee the war—mainly women and children—looking for sanctuary here, is woefully inadequate, and the levels for next year are also concerning, and the Welsh Government has been...
Sioned Williams: Thank you, Llywydd. Minister, I'm sure you will have seen the concerning statistics on deep poverty in Wales published by the Bevan Foundation this morning. The evidence is there of households having grave difficulty in affording the necessities in life—food, shelter, heat—because of very low income or no income at all, or because debt takes up a large proportion of their income. Energy...
Sioned Williams: Thank you, Minister. I was asking particularly about the discretionary assistance fund, but perhaps we could return to that at another time. I do have a question on prepayment meters and this concern that people are being forced onto them against their will, even when it's not safe for them to be on such a meter, which is contrary to the duty of the supplier to check that. I'm pleased that so...
Sioned Williams: Opening the debate, Rhun ap Iorwerth said that preventative has to be the attitude we take towards health, and I want to speak to the part of our motion that calls for the placing of preventative measures at the heart of all health-related policy and activity involving all Government departments. Plaid Cymru has emphasised time and again when we debate health in all its aspects the need to...
Sioned Williams: Public Health Wales states in its recent report 'Cost of living crisis in Wales: A public health lens' that the cost-of-living crisis is not just a temporary economic squeeze, it is a long-term public health issue affecting the whole population. We will never achieve the fairer Wales we all desire to see if our health service continues to be a means to address the consequences of poverty and...
Sioned Williams: Thank you to Jack Sargeant for bringing this topic before us this afternoon. Plaid Cymru fully supports a ban on forcing customers to pay for their energy through prepayment meters, and as I raised with the Minister for Social Justice in the Chamber this afternoon, the Conservative Government in Westminster needs to do more than encourage electricity and gas suppliers to prevent this unsafe...
Sioned Williams: Thank you for the statement, Deputy Minister.
Sioned Williams: The co-operation agreement between the Welsh Government and Plaid Cymru promises to make Wales the most LGBTQ+ friendly nation in Europe and support the publication of an LGBTQ+ action plan. Today is therefore a proud day for Plaid Cymru, as for Adam Price as the first LGBTQ+ party leader in the Senedd, with part of that commitment realised with the publication of the action plan, an action...
Sioned Williams: In introducing the draft budget to the Senedd, the Minister mentioned that this was one of the most difficult budgets since devolution. This is because it is a time of austerity, a time of poverty, and a time of crisis, the likes of which we haven’t seen for decades. In the Wales of the twenty-first century, nurses and teachers are amongst the thousands who are having to turn to foodbanks....
