Delyth Jewell: Thank you, Minister. The Minister for International Relations and the Welsh Language told the External Affairs and Additional Legislation Committee recently that your Government is developing red lines in relation to devolved areas that it does not wish to be included in future trade agreements. Minister, can you tell us what those red lines are? She also told us that the Welsh Government...
Delyth Jewell: On the morning of the day that the Prime Minister announced this review of devolution, I received an e-mail from you, Minister, giving an update on the work that you've been doing to try to improve inter-governmental working in your role as the Welsh Government representative on the JMC(EN). You announced that the committee had agreed draft principles on how those relations should be...
Delyth Jewell: The building that we're debating in is often celebrated for its architecture, its concave ceiling, its sloping walls. The contours of the space itself remind us of not just the principles of openness and transparency in democracy, but also the, at times, circuitous path we've taken to get here, winning the vote in 1997 by a whisker and the work that's happened in the past 20 years to engage...
Delyth Jewell: 2. Will the Deputy Minister make a statement on Welsh Government efforts to promote equality in South Wales East? OAQ54283
Delyth Jewell: Thank you for your response. You may be aware that the decision to close Pontllanfraith leisure centre was recently overturned, on the basis that Caerphilly County Borough Council had failed to take into account the effect of closure on disadvantaged people in the area as part of its equality duty. Minister, would you agree that the council failed in its duties to disadvantaged people in...
Delyth Jewell: Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd. I wonder if we could take a moment to reflect on the regrettable and bizarre situation that we're in. We're talking about preparedness for various Brexit scenarios, every one of which will result in us being worse off than we are now. We are preparing simply to minimise the damage we inflict on ourselves. I welcome much of the Welsh Government's preparation, but it is...
Delyth Jewell: Will the Minister make a statement on the Welsh Government's efforts to protect biodiversity in South Wales East?
Delyth Jewell: The LIFE and biodiversity fund of the European Union for reviving certain species and funding environmental projects has invested €65 million in Wales over the last 25 years, and the fund bridges research, development and inclusion, and it funds innovative technologies too. There are a number of projects that have been funded through this, including Celtic forests and essential peat bog...
Delyth Jewell: I'd also like to thank David Rees for his excellent chairmanship of the committee, and the officials who do such a sterling job in assisting our work. I consider it a privilege that I'm able to play a part of a committee that's doing this important work relating to Brexit in this crucial, bizarre time in our politics, and with people from across different parties who want to take the issues...
Delyth Jewell: So, after months of will he/won’t he?, now we know the calibre of our Prime Minister, and I do not say it with admiration. Boris Johnson is a man who is without any sense of shame or, indeed, any care for the weight of history and how wanting it will find him. When Johnson was elected, he was commonly considered to be an experiment, a, 'Once more unto the EU, dear friends', a last-chance,...
Delyth Jewell: 3. Will the Counsel General provide an update on the Welsh Government's intervention in the High Court prorogation case, ahead of the Supreme Court appeal? OAQ54308
Delyth Jewell: The Scottish Court of Session found that Boris Johnson misled the Queen about his reasons for wanting to prorogue Parliament. The Prime Minister had said that it was so that a Queen's Speech could be introduced, but the judgment made it clear that there was documented evidence that the true reason was to stymie parliamentary scrutiny of the Executive. The English High Court did not contradict...
Delyth Jewell: On the first Saturday of this month, thousands gathered in Penderyn Square in Merthyr for a march for independence. However, many were unable to attend due to the lack of sufficient capacity on train services to Merthyr. Many trains were packed to the brim, with some trains bypassing some stations altogether due to the carriages being full from Cardiff Central. It simply isn't good enough to...
Delyth Jewell: Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd. I thank the Minister for his statement. What an almighty mess the UK Government is making of things. The Prime Minister is found to have lied to the Queen and is happy to gag Parliament and to flout the rule of law. As you've said, Minister, if prorogation continues—and it's no guarantee, considering how the Supreme Court case seems to be going—but if prorogation...
Delyth Jewell: What is the Welsh Government's analysis of Wales' current fiscal position as set out in Government Expenditure and Revenue Wales 2019, published by Cardiff University?
Delyth Jewell: Minister, the draft international strategy that you published over the summer includes three aims. The third of these is to highlight Wales as a nation that is responsible at a global level. Can you explain how that is in keeping with the Welsh Government’s presence in the Defence and Security Equipment International arms fair last week?
Delyth Jewell: Minister, I don’t think that response is sufficient. Time and time again, we’ve received pledges from your Government stating that you want to be responsible, ethical, progressive, and time and again, you undermine this by behaving in unethical, irresponsible and non-progressive ways. So, one area that is highlighted in the strategy is to use the Welsh language to promote the unique...
Delyth Jewell: Well, I’m afraid that’s an inadequate response. It’s good to hear about the good work that is happening on the Welsh language within Government, but that should be in the strategy. In terms of asylum seekers and refugees, you should consider that as a matter of urgency. I’d like to turn now to the other weaknesses of the international strategy. It’s a strange mix of...
Delyth Jewell: Deputy Minister, I've been an Assembly Member for less than a year and I've lost count of how many times we've had to discuss the loss of jobs in our communities in this Chamber. Schaeffler in Llanelli, Ford in Bridgend, Rehau in Ynys Môn, Quinn Radiators in Newport and now Orb in Newport again—in total, it's more than 3,000 jobs in the space of months. So, Deputy Minister, I'd like to ask...
Delyth Jewell: I thank the Minister for his statement. We share concerns about 'no deal', in particular the desperately worrying point he made at the end of his statement that neither Wales nor the United Kingdom can be truly prepared for all eventualities. Now, we all know that it's the most vulnerable people in society who are going to suffer most. Try telling them to adapt to circumstances, as the...
