Paul Davies: Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd. Can I thank Members for contributing to this debate this afternoon? We've heard some very insightful contributions from Members on some of the issues facing the sector and the impact that driver shortages are having more widely on the economy. I'm grateful to all Members, whether they are committee members or not, for engaging on this issue. Before I respond to...
Paul Davies: It's a shame that some Members in this Chamber are playing politics with this issue. And so that the Member for Alyn and Deeside hears, and other Members too, the behaviour of P&O Ferries is a scandal and is entirely unacceptable, and we as a group here have made that entirely clear. Now, bearing in mind the serious situation, and considering that it appears that the chief executive of this...
Paul Davies: First Minister, as you are aware, the Finance Committee of the Senedd will be looking at the shared prosperity fund, and, as Chair of the Economy, Trade and Rural Affairs Committee, I want to make it clear that my committee will also be investigating these new funding arrangements and the impact of the arrangements on Wales, once the Finance Committee has reported on this issue. Now, you and...
Paul Davies: Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd. Can I thank the Minister for his statement this afternoon? I appreciate that the decision to introduce import control checks has been scrapped quickly and without meaningful dialogue with Governments across the UK, and so, as a result, the Welsh Government has not had a huge amount of time to really consider the implications for Wales. Nevertheless, I'm grateful to the...
Paul Davies: Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd, and I move the motion tabled in the name of my colleague Darren Millar. Today, our motion reflects the fact that, by many key indicators, the Welsh economy continues to lag behind other parts of the United Kingdom. For example, it's a fact that out of all the nations of the UK, Wales has had the worst gross value added growth since 1999. We've also had the lowest...
Paul Davies: I will take an intervention from the Member for Mid and West Wales.
Paul Davies: Well, I'm not sure whether you're a unionist or not, Joyce, to be perfectly honest, after that intervention. I'm a unionist, I believe in the United Kingdom and so should you if you are a member of the so-called Labour unionist party. Now, one of the biggest burdens on businesses in Wales is non-domestic rates, and that has been a long-standing issue for businesses. At the end of the third...
Paul Davies: Yes, but the statistics are very, very clear, Mike: Wales's businesses pay the highest business rates in the whole of the United Kingdom. That is a fact and a fact that you cannot get away from. Of course, business rates are just one piece of the jigsaw puzzle in creating the conditions for growth and making Wales a more attractive place to do business. We need to harness the potential of our...
Paul Davies: —what action they can take. And I will take an intervention from the Member for Islwyn.
Paul Davies: Well, Llywydd, I'm not going to take any lectures from the Labour Party when it comes to running the economy. Let's not forget that it was the Deputy Minister for Climate Change that said—and this is what he said— 'For 20 years we’ve pretended we know what we’re doing on the economy—and the truth is we don’t really know what we’re doing on the economy. Nobody knows what...
Paul Davies: Will the Minister make a statement on the provision of ambulance services in Pembrokeshire?
Paul Davies: Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd. Can I thank the Minister for his statement this afternoon? Of course, offshore marine energy is something that I'm particularly interested in, given the constituency that I represent and the opportunities that that particular part of the Welsh coastline presents for the sector and, indeed, for the Welsh economy. Indeed, the Minister has mentioned the latest...
Paul Davies: 6. What are the Minister's spending priorities for Preseli Pembrokeshire for the next 12 months? OQ58073
Paul Davies: 3. What is the Welsh Government doing to support farmers in Preseli Pembrokeshire? OQ58072
Paul Davies: Minister, the one project the Welsh Government has committed to is reducing the speed limit on the A40 in Scleddau in my constituency in this financial year, and yet the Government has recently made it clear that current capital budget allocations for trunk-road network operations in 2022-23 require all projects to be re-evaluated. Minister, I can't overemphasise the importance of road...
Paul Davies: Minister, one of the most pressing issues facing farmers in Preseli Pembrokeshire is, of course, bovine TB. As you know, the Economy, Trade and Rural Affairs Committee has recently published a report on the Welsh Government's bovine TB eradication programme. One of the key points of that report is the need to ensure that farmers, and indeed others involved in tackling bovine TB, are treated...
Paul Davies: It gives me great pleasure to speak in support of this particular petition. Now, the organiser of this petition is Helen Reeves-Graham, who is a constituent of mine and is a formidable campaigner for improving services for people with Tourette's syndrome in Wales, and I'm proud to have people like Helen living in my constituency. As the Chair of the Petitions Committee said, it's thought that...
Paul Davies: Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd. I move the amendment tabled in the name of my colleague Darren Millar. Members will be aware that the Finance Committee is looking at post-EU funding and, as I've said before, the Economy, Trade, and Rural Affairs Committee will probably look at this matter later on this year, after the Finance Committee has concluded its inquiry. Of course, the effective delivery of...
Paul Davies: I've said before in this Chamber that it is important that Governments at all levels actually work together, but this is about real devolution, isn't it? It's devolving these matters to local authorities, and that is hugely important, because local authorities can prioritise the projects in their own areas. That, surely, is devolution. The final part of our amendment calls on the UK...
Paul Davies: Trefnydd, can I ask for two statements from the Welsh Government this afternoon? Firstly, I'd be grateful if the Minister for Health and Social Services could bring forward a statement on ophthalmology services, following an increase in representations that I've received from people waiting urgently for treatment. Some of those patients have wet macular degeneration and, while there is no...
