Rebecca Evans: Diolch, Llywydd. I welcome today's debate and the opportunity to set out the reality of what's actually happened to Wales's finances. In short, had the Welsh Government's budget grown in line with the economy since 2010-11, it would be £4 billion higher next year. Against this stark backdrop, I do find it extraordinary that the Welsh Conservatives have actually chosen to debate the issue of...
Rebecca Evans: The figures that we've had in the motion and the figures that I've just given to you now are both correct, because the figure that relates to the £300 million over 10 years is, obviously, a correct figure, as is it the correct figure if the funding had grown in line with the economy. If we had grown in line with public spending over that period, we'd actually have £5 billion or £6 billion...
Rebecca Evans: Yes, and that money was hard won by years of negotiations on the part of the Welsh Government, which Mark Drakeford led on. Moving back to the issue of the consistent underinvestment by the UK Government in non-devolved areas in Wales, between 2011 and 2016, the Welsh Government contributed around £362 million to wider public sector spending on Welsh railways. We also invested over £220...
Rebecca Evans: Well, Welsh Government has, over a period of years, prioritised the health service in terms of its budget and I've been very clear in the discussions that we've had in this Chamber and elsewhere that Welsh Government will again, this year, in our budget, which we'll be publishing on 16 December, be prioritising the health service alongside, of course, giving local authorities the best...
Rebecca Evans: Welsh Government has been really clear in terms of the new taxes that it's exploring introducing. So, we're currently exploring introducing a vacant land tax, but, of course, this process has taken a lot longer than we would have hoped, again, due to delays on the part of the UK Government. So, there would be no possibility of introducing a new tax this side of the Assembly elections, but, of...
Rebecca Evans: Diolch, Llywydd. There are two changes to this week's business. Later this afternoon, the Minister for Environment, Energy and Rural Affairs will make a statement on the food and drink Wales cluster network, and, additionally, tomorrow's short debate has been postponed. Draft business for the next three sitting weeks is set out on the business statement and announcement, which can be found...
Rebecca Evans: Thank you to Darren Millar for raising these issues this afternoon. He'll remember that the Minister for Health and Social Services published on 14 November the revised improvement framework for Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board, setting out the expectations it will need to meet in order to be stepped down from its special measures. And I know the health Minister was pleased to note...
Rebecca Evans: Thank you very much for asking for those three statements, or debates. I know that you have a meeting planned with the Minister for housing and regeneration in order to discuss the particular concerns about waste, and I know that she's aware of the research to which you referred. The Welsh Government has itself commissioned a study into carrier bag usage in Wales, and that research has...
Rebecca Evans: So, on the first issue, which is the attendance at secondary schools in Blaenau Gwent, I'd invite you to write to the Minister for Education outlining your views and concerns there. And, of course, the next item of business this afternoon is the statement by the education Minister on the PISA results, and I know that she's keen to discuss all of these issues with Members this afternoon.
Rebecca Evans: I'm certainly looking forward to celebrating Small Business Saturday, as I'm sure many other colleagues are as well in the run-up to Christmas, and obviously I'm sure that we'll take every opportunity we can to support and promote those independent traders that we have within each of our constituencies across Wales, and the vibrancy that they bring to our high streets. The Minister with...
Rebecca Evans: So, just for the benefit of the record, Llywydd, the Minister for Education wasn't suggesting that she shouldn't or the Welsh Government shouldn't be making a statement on this issue; she was making the point, really, that neither Welsh Ministers nor the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales can play any kind of formal role in what are UK-wide negotiations. Of course, higher education...
Rebecca Evans: Welsh Government agrees completely that the ethnicity question at present isn't inclusive of all of those members of society who consider themselves to be Welsh but aren't white. I can confirm that Welsh Government officials have been raising this directly with the ONS for quite some time, and I have written recently to the Minister for the Constitution on this matter to more formally raise...
Rebecca Evans: Thank you very much to Alun Davies. Of course, he's right to say that public access to the new Grange hospital will be absolutely critical in terms of ensuring that that hospital is able to best meet the needs of the people of the area and to offer opportunities for their families to visit and support them, and so on. I'm pleased that he's had the opportunity to discuss it with the Minister...
Rebecca Evans: Diolch, Llywydd. There is one change to this week's business. Tomorrow's debate on the motion to annual the Renting Homes (Fees etc.) (Specified Information) (Wales) Regulations 2019 has been withdrawn. Draft business for the next three sitting weeks is set out on the business statement and announcement, which can be found amongst the meeting papers available to Members electronically.
Rebecca Evans: Well, Llywydd, the Welsh Government has recently closed a consultation on exactly this specific issue. And I know that the education Minister will be keen to update the Senedd on the outcome of her deliberations, when she's had the opportunity to fully consider all of the responses to that consultation.
Rebecca Evans: Llywydd, there's been no party that has done more for the Welsh language than the Labour Party. The Welsh Government and the Welsh Labour Party has a long and proud history of supporting the Welsh language and being enthusiastic about the Welsh language, and ambitious for the Welsh language. And that's why Cymraeg 2050 is central to all Welsh Government policies, and we're committed to...
Rebecca Evans: Thank you to Mike Hedges for raising these two issues. The first related to Welsh Government's work in terms of supporting and enabling disabled people into the workplace within the Welsh Government context. As a disability confident leader level 3 organisation, we are committed to increasing the number of disabled people working within this organisation. So, using the social model of...
Rebecca Evans: Well, I'll certainly ask the Minister with responsibility for the economy, and the Deputy Minister, who leads on the Valleys taskforce work, to write to you with an update on the work that has been going on in the Pontypool area and the work that is planned for the Pontypool area, in terms of supporting industry, innovation and employment and investment in the area.FootnoteLink
Rebecca Evans: I thank Nick Ramsay for raising those issues. We did have a statement from the Minister for Economy and Transport just last week in terms of disability and disabled people's employment, so perhaps it's a little too soon to have a further discussion on that. But I know that he will be keen to update Members on the progress of the work that he was discussing in his statement last week, and,...
Rebecca Evans: Thank you. On the issue of the bus passes, I know Transport for Wales are working really hard to ensure that people do have their bus passes with them in good time for the end of this year. There are particular issues—for example, people who have been waiting for their bus pass and then applied a second time, and, of course, that flags up the particular case then as potential fraud. So,...
