Vikki Howells: 10. Will the Minister outline what actions the Welsh Government is taking to promote biodiversity? OAQ53839
Vikki Howells: Thank you, Minister. I, too, wanted to ask a question on the IPBES report, and note your earlier answers. I think the fact that so many of us have asked questions around biodiversity today shows just how important the topic is to all of us. So, I would like to ask you about how you intend to retain and enhance environmental protections derived from the EU. I know that the RSPB has mentioned...
Vikki Howells: Minister, I recently had the pleasure of visiting Rhondda Housing Association's Lle Ysgol development in Hirwaun that was built by a local small and medium-sized enterprise house builder, WDL Homes Ltd. And this brownfield development used a social housing grant to develop 12 homes, but also a commercial unit, which is, essentially, a village shop. How is the Welsh Government engaging with...
Vikki Howells: 2. What actions is the Welsh Government taking to improve public transport opportunities in the south Wales valleys? OAQ53886
Vikki Howells: Thank you, First Minister. I was very interested to see the announcement on the out-of-hours bus service pilot from the Rhondda valley as part of the Valleys taskforce initiative, and I know lots of my fellow AMs from the Valleys were equally enthused to read about that. We know that current timetables don't meet shift workers' needs, which can be so important for tackling poverty, and in...
Vikki Howells: Trefnydd, I'd like to request three statements from the Welsh Government today. Firstly, I'd like to ask for a statement from you as Finance Minister on preparations to create a vacant land tax. This is something that I've welcomed, as it could be a key driver to tackle land banking, to promote regeneration and community well-being, so I wonder how plans for this are proceeding. Secondly, I'd...
Vikki Howells: What intervention is the Welsh Government making to support the provision of supply teachers in schools?
Vikki Howells: It's a pleasure to speak in support of the motion tabled in front of us today because this topic is a really important one, both practically and in principle—practically as this concerns the replacement of funding worth £370 million to Wales annually, funding that has been used to create tens of thousands of new jobs in Wales, to assist and establish tens of thousands of businesses, to...
Vikki Howells: I'd like to start by commending the Health, Social Care and Sport Committee for what I think is a really interesting piece of work. I followed this inquiry closely, and I want to focus on a couple of recommendations today. This is an issue that is really close to my heart. It's close to my heart as a parent, it's close to my heart as a former teacher and also as a former play scheme worker,...
Vikki Howells: First Minister, you will be aware that last month the New Zealand Labour Government published its well-being budget, which is described as a world first. It placed social well-being indicators as priorities within their economic policy, instead of a narrow focus on GDP or GVA. With initiatives like the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015 and the economic contract here in Wales,...
Vikki Howells: Thank you, Minister, for your statement today. This is such an important issue, especially when we all know the harm that air pollution causes. Like so many of the Valleys communities, my area is one where air was contaminated by heavy industry with the iconic Phurnacite smokeless fuel plant closing 30 years ago, but the legacy that that's left, particularly with respiratory conditions in the...
Vikki Howells: June is LGBT Pride Month, and an occasion for LGBT+ people to celebrate advances in their rights around the world. It's also a chance to raise awareness of current issues facing the community. 2019’s event is particularly poignant, coming as it does in the month marking the fiftieth anniversary of the Stonewall riots. Closer to home, there is also a significance to Pride this year, as Pride...
Vikki Howells: I don't think you'll find a Member in this Chamber today who is more passionate about Welsh history and the teaching of Welsh history than me, as someone with a degree in history and Welsh history from Cardiff University and a Master's in modern Welsh history from the same institution, and more importantly, someone who taught history in a secondary school at key stage 3, GCSE and A-level for...
Vikki Howells: And yet today I'm unsure whether or not I will actually be able to support this motion, because I do believe that it may ill-thought-through. I will listen intently to the comments of the Minister on this matter before making my decision, but I want to pick up on the most obvious point. It's a very delicate point, but a point that really does need to be made. The motion states that the...
Vikki Howells: [Inaudible.]—when every single history GCSE that's put out by the WJEC does have a Welsh history dimension to it.
Vikki Howells: I'd like to join my colleague, David Melding, in expressing my excitement at the National Eisteddfod coming to Rhondda Cynon Taf in 2022, and bringing important cultural and economic benefits as well, of course, as raising the profile of the Welsh language. I think one of the most important ways that we can actually make sure that we meet our target of a million Welsh speakers by 2050 is to...
Vikki Howells: On 23 June 1894, ten to four in the afternoon, two loud bangs were heard in Cilfynydd, the result of a devastating explosion at the Albion colliery. The colliery had given birth to the village. After the sinking of the first mine shaft, the population had increased from 500 within a decade and was around 3,500 by 1901. Yet, on this day, the colliery extracted a terrible toll from the local...
Vikki Howells: Minister, it is good that we can benefit here in Wales from initiatives like Safe Routes in Communities and the active travel fund. I note with interest David Melding's contribution, and I'm thinking there could be many young people watching that who think, 'How can we get initiatives like that working in our own schools?' So, my question to you is: how are children and young people being...
Vikki Howells: I'd like to thank all the staff on the committee for their support in what has been a really useful inquiry. In rising to speak today, I'd like to begin by noting the important centenaries being celebrated this year around the development of transport policy in the UK. When I was a teacher, I always used to tell my students that history had relevance in the modern world, and I think these...
Vikki Howells: 1. Will the First Minister provide an update on how the Welsh Government is supporting families to meet the cost of school uniforms? OAQ54194
