Julie James: Well, absolutely. We won the battle, and the war is by no means over, and there are a number of fronts on which that war—if that's the word that you want to use—needs to be conducted. There are some interesting things about the suffrage, as it was first instituted. If all women had been allowed to vote at 18 just after the first world war, there would have been far more of them than there...
Julie James: Formally.
Julie James: Diolch, Llywydd. There are no changes to this week's business. Business for the next three weeks is shown on the business statement and announcement, found among the meeting papers that are available to Members electronically.
Julie James: On the first point that Darren Millar raises, I don't think it's at all appropriate to have a statement about an individual planning issue, so I suggest very strongly that he writes and gets the answer that he seeks for his constituents direct from the Minister. On the second, I think that support for our traditional Welsh pubs is a very important issue. I was very pleased to see the...
Julie James: Well, thank you for those three important issues. The Cabinet Secretary for Health was listening very carefully to what you had to say about the ward 10 debate, and I think he took your point on board about it not being lost in the general thing. So, I think he'll be taking that on board when he reports back to the Assembly in due course. In terms of fracking, I share the Member's assessment...
Julie James: Yes, thank you for those. It's a very, very important point. I'll do those in reverse, if the Member doesn't mind. On British sign language, we were at a very important meeting, the three of us, and I was very impressed by the strength of feeling there about the lack of opportunity and straight discrimination that some families were facing in their attempts to get proper access to British...
Julie James: Thank you for raising that very important point. The Cabinet Secretary is indicating to me that he'll write to Members, setting out what our policy on treating dystonia actually is, and the Member, I'm sure, will be taking it up further from there.
Julie James: I share Dai Lloyd's concern about that stretch of the M4. I drive there very frequently myself, and there are clearly issues. As I said to the Chamber when he raised it last week—it's no less important this time—I will be making sure that the Cabinet Secretary does update the Chamber. I'm afraid I don't have an exact answer, but I will be impressing upon him the urgency of the situation.
Julie James: Thank you for raising that. The Cabinet Secretary has addressed this a number of times already in the Chamber. I'm sure, if the Member has very specific issues he wants to raise about it, he can raise them individually. I've also, with my digital portfolio, had a long conversation with him about the best way forward for this, and I'm in fact attending a meeting later this week about it. But...
Julie James: On the first one, I think we all very much welcome the moving forward of the inquiry, and I want to pay tribute to Julie Morgan for her tireless campaigning in this regard for her constituents, and we're all very relieved that a senior judge has been appointed and that the inquiry is going to go forward. The Cabinet Secretary is indicating to me—. He's reminding, me, in fact, of something I...
Julie James: A public inquiry has been taking place over the last 12 months to scrutinise all aspects of the project, including costs and suggested alternatives. The independent inspectors’ report and the business case will inform a final decision this year on whether to proceed with the scheme.
Julie James: No, not at all. I'm not going to comment on the merits of the project due to the fact that the statutory final decision remains to be made, and it's quite clear that there are a wide range of views on this significant potential infrastructure investment, and it's extremely right that these views are all being heard at the inquiry and should be taken into account. The Cabinet Secretary for...
Julie James: Yes, I think the Member makes a fair point. Sadly, I was a little older than 13 at the start of this. Not much older, obviously. [Laughter.] There are a large number of legal implications involved in the consideration of the public inquiry, and we will need to consider options once we've got the outcome of the inquiry, and that will have to include also the timing of the decision, the...
Julie James: I'm very delighted to confirm that we'll bring forward a debate in Government time on the M4 corridor around the Newport project following the conclusion of the public local inquiry. Given the legal implications, we are currently considering options as to the timing and format of that, and I will be keeping the Assembly informed of those plans as myself, other than in deputising for the First...
Julie James: The survey provides a wealth of information to support work to improve population health. Its findings demonstrate that there is public support for many of the priorities set out in 'Prosperity for All', including our focus on early years.
Julie James: We have a very strong track record in Wales of taking strong public health action where there is evidence that it will improve or protect population health. The public health Act, the active travel Act, and the current minimum unit pricing Bill are very good cases in point. We'll be continuing to prioritise such interventions where there is merit and where taking action is within the powers...
Julie James: I think Angela Burns makes a very good point. The survey was very interesting, wasn't it, in terms of the appetite of people to be regulated, almost, in terms of public health? The Welsh Government spends about £88 million of core funding on Public Health Wales, and we have a range of measures aimed at preventing ill health, alongside a number of other public health functions. We also have...
Julie James: I think that's really quite a stretch in terms of public health. We have a very good working relationship with all of our local authority partners in this, and, of course, they're responsible for delivering social care as well. And we have a very well-developed bond with them around travel and health travel in particular. That's something that also comes up in the workforce partnership...
Julie James: Well, I don't think they are conflicting at all, because, of course, the First Minister was speaking about the potential for a free trade deal between the UK as a whole and the USA and, as we've explained on numerous previous occasions, in the sort of customs union that we envisage the UK would conduct parallel negotiations with third countries to those undertaken by the EU 27. Our talks...
Julie James: Well, I'm very glad to hear Neil Hamilton's idea of appeasement, which is not my idea of appeasement. There is a huge difference between the presidency of the United States and the United States as an entire country. The First Minister and the Labour Party have been extremely clear about the position on the customs union. We have made it explicit that it's in Wales's best interest to remain...
