Gareth Bennett: Thank you for your statement, First Minister, and thank you for your kind attention to the questions I and the UKIP group have asked you over the past two and a half years. We have occasionally had our disagreements, but I feel that these were political differences of opinion, and certainly, for my part, I never felt there was any personal acrimony there. I have enjoyed our encounters. Of...
Gareth Bennett: Abstain.
Gareth Bennett: I'm pleased to move today's UKIP debate. As our motion states, there are around 2,000 incidents of sewer blockages in Wales each month, or around 24,000 a year. Recently, there has been coverage in the media of fatbergs, where fat, oil and grease combine with rags and other material in the sewer to clog up the network. There have been tv programmes describing fatbergs the size of a London...
Gareth Bennett: Diolch, Llywydd. I'd like to welcome you, First Minister, to your new post and wish you the best of luck with it. As we are all aware, obesity is a growing problem in Wales and a particular menace is childhood obesity. There has been a recent survey from Cancer Research UK that is linking obesity in Wales to the ready availability of cheap junk food. What steps is the Welsh Government taking...
Gareth Bennett: Yes, I was aware of some of the actions that you've taken in the past regarding lobbying the UK Government, and I think it's a good idea to do that. I thank you for the initiatives in the past. I was aware also that the health Minister in the Welsh Government called publicly in 2016 for the UK Government to impose a blanket ban on junk food advertising on television prior to the 9 p.m....
Gareth Bennett: I think it's a sensible approach and I look forward to further statements from the Government on these issues. Thank you.
Gareth Bennett: Thanks to the First Minister for bringing us another statement on Brexit. You say, First Minister, that you want a Brexit that protects jobs. Jobs for whom, I wonder—jobs for British people, or jobs for the hundreds of thousands of people who have come to Britain in recent years, who together comprise—[Interruption.]—who together comprise a formidable pool of cheap labour for big...
Gareth Bennett: Thanks to the Conservatives for bringing today's debate on housing. We support the Conservative motion today; we think it's quite focused and concentrates on the need to increase housing supply. It's actually fairly flexible in the suggestions it makes as to how to increase that supply. The Labour amendment follows a particular pattern that we're getting quite used to in the Assembly, in...
Gareth Bennett: Yes, I appreciate that there probably are difficulties over access to land. I think it's worth looking at, but I understand it is a major challenge. Empty homes are another issue, and there is a measure that local councils can bring in called 'empty dwelling management Orders', which could force the hand of developers who are leaving properties empty for long periods. So, these can be used,...
Gareth Bennett: Diolch, Llywydd. And can I also take the opportunity to add my condolences to the family of Steffan Lewis? First Minister, this is the time of year when many people have to complete their tax returns, and, therefore, the subject of taxation is in their minds. Of course, we know that governments wouldn't function if we didn't have taxation, but I would add, from my own observation, that most...
Gareth Bennett: I thank you for clarifying your position on that. Now, on the issue of income tax variation, that's something that's coming up later on today—it does sound as if your long-term view may be that a variation of the income tax rate in Wales may be a lever that you can legitimately use, and which you may be enthusiastic about using in the future.
Gareth Bennett: I think that's an excellent point, First Minister. However, we do have the evidence of 20 years of a devolved Wales in which the economic performance of the region has signally failed to improve. [Interruption.] The region, the country—call it what you will. Call it what you will. The economic performance of Wales has not signally improved over the past 20 years. The latest gross value...
Gareth Bennett: Thanks to the Brexit Minister for his statement today. To quote from page 3 of your statement: 'we face leaving without a deal on 29 March and we must prepare for that.' I think that's a very sensible approach. I take on board what you say, that many levers, in terms of preparing for Brexit, are in the hands of the UK Government. But I think that there are a lot of contingency plans that you...
Gareth Bennett: Thanks for your response to Mick Antoniw's question earlier, First Minister. I hear what you say—that you want the UK Parliament to rule out a 'no deal' Brexit. So, at least you've made your position clear. Obviously, over here, we're in a completely different position to that; we don't see a 'no deal' Brexit as being a bad solution; we actually see it as a World Trade Organization deal...
Gareth Bennett: Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd. First Minister, Adam Price touched briefly on the issue of Brexit in his questions. As we both know, there are 66 days to go before the UK is due to depart the European Union. Theresa May has ruled out delaying the date of departure. She has also ruled out a second referendum, so the default position is that we leave the EU on 29 March. Given that, First Minister,...
Gareth Bennett: I know that there are many statements this afternoon, and I'm actually glad that there are statements coming out in a sense, because there is an element in what the Welsh Government is saying, in that you are making preparations for Brexit, which we very much welcome on this side of the Chamber. But, at the same time, you are still clinging to this idea that you've just articulated once...
Gareth Bennett: Well, I do really question whether the will of the people who are sitting in the House of Commons overrules the people of the United Kingdom, who have already had their say on this matter. And as was made clear by David Cameron when he gave us this referendum in the first place, it was supposed to be a vote that was going to be binding on the House of Commons. Constitutionally perhaps...
Gareth Bennett: Thanks, First Minister, for the latest in a series of Brexit-related statements, which began last week. Now, we did have a semi-interesting one last week from your Brexit Minister, in which he was talking about things like your Welsh Government Brexit website, offering advice to businesses and organisations about contingency planning for leaving. And this, as I mentioned to you last week, is...
Gareth Bennett: Diolch, Llywydd. I'd like to welcome the Minister to her new post. Minister, I see that planning is now part of your portfolio, it wasn't previously included with the local government and housing department's responsibilities. I appreciate what you've said today that you've only been in office for six weeks, but do you have any initial thoughts on how well the planning process works in Wales?
Gareth Bennett: Thank you for clarifying some of the reasons why the planning element has been brought into the department. I think, certainly from my point of view, it's probably useful. I always thought that planning was something that straddles a couple of different possible departments. But I always thought putting it together with housing would perhaps make things easier. Of course, we do need to...
