Mike Hedges: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. I'm very pleased to reply to the debate and I'd like to thank everyone who has taken part in it. I think that one of the weaknesses of the Assembly, one of the criticisms we've had, is that we tend to be very inward looking and not prepared to learn from outside. I think this is an example of where we are looking at what's happened, what's gone wrong,...
Mike Hedges: Will the First Minister make a statement on the importance of the M4 to south Wales?
Mike Hedges: I just wanted to make three very brief points in this debate. Firstly, the first supplementary budget shows very small change from the original budget. If it showed substantial changes, we’d probably have a problem on our hands, and it would be very strange indeed if there was large blocks of money moving around. So, I think that’s what we’ve got to expect from the first supplementary...
Mike Hedges: Just for clarification: these figures are for Wales.
Mike Hedges: Housing is a basic need and a basic right. I think that is something that we really do need at the forefront of our minds every time we discuss housing. No week is complete without the need for more affordable housing being made clear to me by my constituents—in the last seven days, a family of four, including a disabled child, living in a one-bedroomed flat; someone who is effectively...
Mike Hedges: Certainly.
Mike Hedges: It was also before my time here. What I will say is that councils were continuing to sell council houses under the right to buy—and I'm sure Mark Isherwood regrets the sale of council houses. Until recently, councils were not building. Low-cost owner-occupier properties have become buy-to-rent properties. That's a real thing that's affected very many of my constituents—very many...
Mike Hedges: The Westminster Government seems to have an energy policy based upon offshore wind and nuclear power. As prototypes are by their very nature more expensive, and the future storage costs of nuclear are capped—we would never have had a nuclear power station built if they weren't capped—it is not a level playing field. Did the Westminster Government explain why the price for nuclear—which,...
Mike Hedges: The first thing any voting system needs to be is secure. We should have a system that does not allow either multivoting or the harvesting of votes. We do, however, need to make it easier to vote. Has the Welsh Government considered supporting two simple innovations: allowing early voting at a central voting centre, and, secondly, allowing voting at any polling station in a constituency?
Mike Hedges: As you know, leader of the house, in the first week of May this year, Virgin Media announced 772 job cuts at its Swansea call centre, which it proposed to close, causing serious concerns to many of my constituents and many of yours. The Welsh Government, since then, have been involved in supporting staff working in Virgin Media, and all I've heard are good things from the people working there...
Mike Hedges: Can I talk about Brexit in terms of organisations that rarely get mentioned, namely local government? How is the Welsh Government helping local authorities prepare for Brexit, including the possibility of a 'no deal' scenario? Because local authorities don't often get mentioned when we talk about Brexit, but they will, in many cases, be at the front line when we come out.
Mike Hedges: I welcome the opportunity to say a few words on the retirement of the auditor general, Huw Vaughan Thomas. I've been a member of the Public Accounts Committee, or a substitute member, since 2011. To me, the outgoing auditor general had two great strengths, which I hope Nick Ramsay will agree with me on: knowing what the key areas to investigate and report on were, and proportionality in his...
Mike Hedges: Can I thank John Griffiths for giving me a minute in this debate? What's the difference between 20 mph and 30 mph? It doesn't sound very much, does it? Well, the perception, the corner vision, how much you actually see, increases the slower you're going. Your reaction time—. For those who did their driving test many years ago, the back page of 'The Highway Code' told you how long it would...
Mike Hedges: Two questions for the leader of the house, one I think that the leader of the house must be getting used to by now: can I request a further update on Welsh Government action on the Virgin Media closure in Swansea? Unfortunately, I say now 'on the closure'; before we broke up for the summer it was 'the proposed closure'. Can I ask for a statement on that? Can I also request a statement on...
Mike Hedges: Including yourself.
Mike Hedges: 4. Will the Cabinet Secretary provide an update on the proposed growth in Welsh-medium education? OAQ52574
Mike Hedges: Thank you for that answer. I wasn't aware of what happened this morning, obviously. But if it is intended to create 1 million Welsh speakers, the route most likely to be successful is to increase the number of children attending Welsh-medium schools. I know from personal experience, as do others in this Chamber, just how difficult it is to learn Welsh as an adult. This would mean...
Mike Hedges: Will the First Minister make a statement on ways to tackle loneliness and isolation?
Mike Hedges: You're very welcome.
Mike Hedges: 3. Will the Cabinet Secretary make a statement on traffic congestion on the M4 in the South Wales West region? OAQ52617
