Janet Finch-Saunders: Move to the vote.
Janet Finch-Saunders: I move.
Janet Finch-Saunders: Diolch, Llywydd. Turning to amendment 10, this is split into three parts: to delay the commencement of section 1, including the revision of Crown Prosecution Service guidance; an alternative pathway away from the criminal justice system to be established; and the establishment of parenting support. The Deputy Minister will no doubt be familiar with the arguments that Welsh Conservatives...
Janet Finch-Saunders: Let's move to the vote.
Janet Finch-Saunders: 10. What discussions has the Minister had with the UK Government on ways to strengthen the union of Great Britain and Northern Ireland post-Brexit? OAQ54945
Janet Finch-Saunders: Great. Earlier this term, you spoke of the need for a more shared vision of the governance of the United Kingdom and a new culture of mutual respect and parity of esteem in the kind of inter-governmental relations. A similar message is conveyed in the document 'Reforming our Union: Shared Governance in the UK'. For example, proposition 1 speaks of a voluntary association of nations, and...
Janet Finch-Saunders: Skills have become our Welsh dragon's Achilles' heel. Sixty-seven per cent of senior business leaders have reported that their organisation is currently experiencing a skills shortage; 54 per cent of employers said that they could not recruit enough staff with the skills they required. And the skills shortage is costing business in Wales approximately £155.2 million. So that Welsh...
Janet Finch-Saunders: Last autumn, the auditor general found that the way that public services boards are currently operating is hampering their ability to improve the well-being of their communities. His report identified weaknesses such as the inadequacy of accountability and oversight arrangements, lack of public reporting and the duplication of PSB activity with other partnerships. Now, there is a significant...
Janet Finch-Saunders: Diolch, Deputy Presiding Officer. I am grateful that I have the opportunity to speak in the final stage of the Children (Abolition of Defence of Reasonable Punishment) (Wales) Bill. This Bill is a free vote among the Welsh Conservative group, and I'd certainly like to reassure Members that, as spokesperson, I have listened to all sides of the debate, all evidence laid before the committee,...
Janet Finch-Saunders: Yes, of course.
Janet Finch-Saunders: Thank you. So, here we have the passing of a Bill that didn't have an in-depth costing for public services from the start, and that doesn't give us complete confidence in how the Bill’s consequences will be communicated to parents and children, and one that doesn't give us, a devolved Parliament, any control over how its enforcement will be applied by two reserved institutions—the Crown...
Janet Finch-Saunders: Yes. Ultimately, your constituents, our families and the voters will be the judges of that. I will promise the Welsh public this today: my colleagues and I will be closely monitoring this situation in the years to come, and if this Bill doesn't work, if this places law-abiding parents at a disadvantage, if this places untold pressure on already overstretched social services, and if this...
Janet Finch-Saunders: —will seek to reverse the ramifications of this dreadful legislation. Diolch yn fawr.
Janet Finch-Saunders: I appreciate that. If I could just make the point clear: we did put 11 amendments in; only two really were considered.
Janet Finch-Saunders: England, of course, is bringing in Lucy's law in April. Southern Ireland is introducing similar regulations next month. Wales, the home of the breeding farm where Lucy was rescued from, has no date for the introduction of the law. There is significant national interest in this, and the Petitions Committee has a petition signed by 11,195 people calling for the ban of the sale of puppies by pet...
Janet Finch-Saunders: I am very concerned, as are some of my constituents, about the coronavirus. The death toll has climbed to 106, and the number of infections is now more than 4,500, and the virus has spread across China and to at least 16 countries. Now, I understand the feeling about no panic, but the one thing that I need to be sure of is that we have got contingency plans in place. I know that during the...
Janet Finch-Saunders: My concerns, Minister, are that the virus seems to be spreading like a normal flu during its incubation period and before any symptoms appear. So, how do you think that we can help medical professionals and the public to become aware of this at the earliest symptoms? If and when a first case in the UK is confirmed, it will be announced as soon as possible by the chief medical officer of the...
Janet Finch-Saunders: As the great, late Winston Churchill said in 1947, 'there is the broad feeling in our country that the people should rule, continuously rule, and that public opinion, expressed by all constitutional means, should shape, guide, and control the actions of Ministers who are their servants and not their masters.' These are very wise words that have eluded the Welsh Government. Despite the people...
Janet Finch-Saunders: Just let me get going. You have campaigned to remain in the EU. You have proposed that Parliament should legislate for a referendum with 'remain' on the ballot paper. You have seen the First Minister here—and I don't refer to him as Mark Drakeford, despite everybody in this Chamber, on those benches, referring to our Prime Minister as 'Boris Johnson' or 'Johnson', even—with the First...
Janet Finch-Saunders: Well, I didn't hear that, so—. I wasn't around at that time. But to put it simply, the EU sucks sovereignty from our national Government and places it in the hands of unelected commissioners, denying democracy, and rubbishing referendums has its own consequences. Winston Churchill quite rightly stated that people should rule and that Ministers are their servants, and not their masters. The...
