Rhun ap Iorwerth: I won't speak for too long. Most of the important points have already been covered by the committee Chair, but this was an important inquiry, I think, because we are talking here about a means of unlocking Wales’s potential. We're talking about one of the key ways of bringing us out of the rut that we've been in as a nation. Investment in Welsh infrastructure is crucially important for the...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: We don't need to look at this particularly carefully to understand why our justice system isn't working for victims. Between 2010 and 2016, a third of the Ministry of Justice budget was cut. This was the department hit second worst after the Department for Work and Pensions. The budgets of courts were cut; the number of courts were cut from 330 to 150. Now, the impact of that, of course, is...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: 'It's extremely challenging to run a service when funding is so uncertain. I have really serious worries about what will happen to all the people who seek support if we aren't able to meet their needs'.
Rhun ap Iorwerth: We know that most people in our society see this as being unacceptable. A YouGov poll recently for the End Violence Against Women Coalition showed that a majority of people saw access to counselling as being more important than access to the police or the courts service for survivors of sexual violence. The vast majority of people—82 per cent—acknowledged that sexual violence does have...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: 'No part of government has ever stepped up and made the guaranteed funding of community-based rape counselling services their responsibility. This is an appalling abandonment of survivors. The current government has seen fit to leave the decision about whether to fund vital and life-saving rape counselling services to a mix of local commissioners including cash-strapped local councils, PCCs...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Why can't Wales do things differently? Why not take responsibility in Wales for doing things differently? The devolution of justice could create a more integrated system and that will bring benefits through merging our health and social services with our justice policy. We have seen much good practice here already in Wales on the ground, thanks to the work of our police and crime...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: A fundamental challenge is to move towards a system that is truly preventative. We don't see that in terms of policy at the moment, and we don't see it in terms of how budgets are divvied up. So, will the First Minister realise that we need real prioritisation now? We need to find ways of moving towards a new kind of NHS, and of being able to invest in the preventative—including...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: I'd like to raise an issue as a supporter of sport in Wales and of the need to celebrate Welsh sporting history, and also as a Cardiff City fan and elected representative of a not insignificant number and hardy bunch of Bluebirds fans from Anglesey—Holyhead in particular—who've been very faithful to the club over the years. Cardiff City Supporters' Trust has become aware of a valuable and...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: May I thank the Minister for the statement? May I first of all say that we have to be very careful in measuring how far we've come? Yes, there has been improvement, but we are talking here about a scandal where babies died, where lives were destroyed. The latest report does show where we've come on the journey in responding to that scandal, and it shows that there's a long distance to travel...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: We have to be careful in suggesting that significant progress has been made, because reading the latest update shows that there are still significant concerns, and, in many ways, at a pretty fundamental level. I'll refer to several elements of the report: 'More than two-thirds...of the actions in the Maternity Improvement Plan are still work in progress'; 'still significant work to do in...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: 7. Will the Minister make a statement on the effect of recent changes to the train timetables on smaller stations? OAQ54951
Rhun ap Iorwerth: 5. Will the Minister make a statement on discussions held with the UK Government regarding the shared prosperity fund? OAQ54940
Rhun ap Iorwerth: This is a case of a question being answered before I have an opportunity to ask it, but there are still some important issues that need to be discussed. A number of constituents contacted me following timetable changes disappointed that services to the smaller stations in Môn—Bodorgan, Rhosneigr, Valley and Llanfairpwll—had been reduced. Yes, we need swift services, but we also need to...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: There are a number of elements that we're needing reassurance about regarding the future of the funding that's going to take the place of structural funds. The sum of money that’s going to come in the next few years is one issue and, in one way, that’s one of the easy things for the UK Government to do: they'll want to be seen to be giving the same amount of money for the period that’s...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. I wasn't a member of the committee during this inquiry, and I look forward to rejoining the committee as I undertake my role as shadow Minister for health once again. But I am very grateful to the committee for producing a report that is exceptionally interesting and teaches us a great deal. The specific issue and what we're trying to achieve here is...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: What conditions does the Welsh Government place on funding it provides for businesses in order to protect workers' rights?
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Thank you, very much Deputy Presiding Officer. I would like a Government statement as to what conditions the Welsh Government places on funding provided by it for businesses in order to safeguard staff and employment in Wales.
Rhun ap Iorwerth: I'm pleased that Welsh Government has been able to support Stena Line with a number of investments in Holyhead, but I want to appeal to Government to ensure that in providing support, it's able also to influence important local employers like Stena too. For example, I wonder if Government was aware of Stena's decision to re-flag its brand new Holyhead-to-Dublin ferry, Estrid. It's great to...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Thank you very much, Llywydd, for accepting my request to ask a few questions. I have two questions on education—schools education first of all. Now, we talk about this target of 1 million Welsh speakers by 2050, and it's good to see that everyone is working together towards that target. Everyone welcomes the target. We should be able to reach it because the role of schools is so very...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Of course, I welcome any initiatives to ensure that there is investment in our town centres. I look forward to working with various organisations and town councils on Anglesey to see how we can take advantage of this—and working in Amlwch, for example, one of the places that has seen town-centre decline over the past few years. But I just wanted to mention one specific idea in the town of...
