Mr Simon Thomas: I thank the Counsel General for his reply. We did, of course, have a debate about this yesterday on the Public Health (Wales) Bill, and the Minister confirmed during that debate that the current powers that Welsh Ministers have are under section 80 of the Environment Act 1995. I think there are two problems with this. One is that that was initially passed, of course, before devolution, and...
Mr Simon Thomas: What assessment has the Welsh Government made of the European Court of Justice’s ruling on the breach of clean water rules in Wales, including at Burry Inlet near Llanelli? TAQ(5)0134(ERA)[W]
Mr Simon Thomas: I thank the Minister for stepping into the breach once again and responding on behalf of the Cabinet Secretary for environment. I think the best response to this decision of the European Court of Justice may be, ‘How dare the EU tell us we can’t bathe in our own sewage’, because that’s what it boils down to. It’s taken a EU Court of Justice to tell the UK Government that the 3,000...
Mr Simon Thomas: Of course, the Cabinet Secretary is right—she is not responsible for staffing matters. However, she is primarily responsible for the fiscal framework in which Welsh universities operate. Her party was responsible for trebling tuition fees five years ago. That had a real effect in Aberystwyth University; significantly fewer English students now attend Aberystwyth University, not because the...
Mr Simon Thomas: Would the Member give way?
Mr Simon Thomas: Can he confirm that the Conservative manifesto will commit to the tidal lagoon in Swansea bay?
Mr Simon Thomas: Will you therefore confirm that it’s the Welsh Government’s intention that these air quality management zones do reduce air pollution, particularly in terms of the very small particulates—the PM10s—that can go deep into the lungs and are particularly dangerous to children and young people who walk or cycle to school? And, therefore, will there be specific targets within your plans for...
Mr Simon Thomas: I’ve raised these issues in correspondence with the Minister around a month ago. I’ve not yet received a response, but I very much hope that I will receive a response soon. Issues of school transportation have been raised, but one thing that is problematic if you are trying to provide bilingual education in rural areas is how you actually hold events outside of school times and ensure...
Mr Simon Thomas: Could I ask the Cabinet Secretary for two statements from the Government? The first is quite simple—we’ve just announced, of course, that all parties in Wales are in favour of scrapping the Severn bridge tolls. I welcome that and look forward to it, but it does leave one bridge—just one bridge—in Wales that does have tolls, and that’s the Cleddau bridge. The Cleddau bridge is wholly...
Mr Simon Thomas: In welcoming the statement from the Cabinet Secretary, can I put on record my acknowledgment of the huge changes and investment that have been made over the last four or five years in Wales that have substantially changed the discussion we have about these issues, as well as some of the co-operative working that we’ve already heard about in the statement? I welcome that. However, I want to...
Mr Simon Thomas: 3. What discussions have taken place between the Cabinet Secretary and the UK Government regarding the effects of air pollution on public health? OAQ(5)0165(HWS)[W]
Mr Simon Thomas: Thank you for that response, Minister. I understand that the Cabinet Secretary leads on this, but this was a specific question on the impact on public health, because it’s been accepted that air pollution is the second greatest factor in terms of early deaths in Wales and has been described as a public health crisis in evidence to the Climate Change, Environment and Rural Affairs Committee...
Mr Simon Thomas: Will the Cabinet Secretary make a statement on the 1,761 Glastir applications that have still not been paid? TAQ(5)0142(ERA)[W]
Mr Simon Thomas: Can I welcome the Cabinet Secretary back to her place, and hope that she recovers well. Can I just say to her, I’m grateful for the updated figures—the figures I had in my original question date from about three weeks ago, so clearly some progress has been made? However, when I looked at the profile of these figures, Gwynedd in particular—Meirion Dwyfor has been one area where farmers...
Mr Simon Thomas: Between November 2015 and 2016, the Nature of Our Village project set out to identify the state of biodiversity in Penparcau, which is populated by 3,000 people and covers 190 acres—hectares, I should say—and is where I live. Three hundred and sixty nine volunteers created wildlife records. Some highlights of these records include: three new bumble bees spotted, five other bee species...
Mr Simon Thomas: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. I think in 10 years that I have worked in some shape of form around this Assembly, I haven’t seen a motion that made my skin crawl more than the one before us today. I don’t say that the purpose or amount of overseas aid is not a subject for considered and well-argued debate—it clearly is. But not even the fig leaf worn by Neil Hamilton to hide his...
Mr Simon Thomas: I won’t give way; I have too much to say, I’m sorry. I’m simply delighted to see him. We are then told about how much is wasted or diverted by corruption. Well, if you call 0.01 per cent, as David Melding has just pointed out, being wasted, then your maths bears too much similarity to that of Diane Abbott’s for my comfort, I have to say. But this corruption thing is interesting,...
Mr Simon Thomas: No, I’m not. You’ve had your chance. No. [Interruption.] Yes, well the truth is in the cash-for-questions inquiry, and everyone can read it. As an MP, I revealed that the BAE Systems had paid millions of pounds in secret commissions to sell Hawk jets to South Africa. I think both of us appeared on the front page of ‘The Guardian’ for our inquiries as Members of Parliament, but I know...
Mr Simon Thomas: What income tax rate does the First Minister expect people in Wales who earn over £80,000 a year to pay from April 2019 onwards?
Mr Simon Thomas: Rhodri Morgan was born to be First Minister, not only because he had the names Rhodri and Hywel, but because of his character and personality. It wasn’t apparent to his own party on two occasions, but, at the third attempt, as Lesley Griffiths has reminded us—three tries for a Welshman—he became leader of a party, an Assembly, a Government and a nation. We needed someone in the early...
