Alun Davies: Minister, I would like to ask for a debate in Government time on Government policy for the Valleys. You will be aware, since the election last year, there have been very few opportunities to discuss the way in which the Welsh Government is going to develop policy, and economic policy particularly, for the Valleys of south Wales. I'd like that debate to be informed by two statements, with,...
Alun Davies: 8. Will the Minister make a statement on patient access to urgent dental services in the Aneurin Bevan University Health Board area? OQ57671
Alun Davies: I think Members across the Chamber will welcome the words of the Member for Preseli Pembrokeshire this afternoon, in the same way as Members across the Chamber have supported the Welsh Government in making the argument to ensure that Wales doesn't lose out as a consequence of the shared prosperity fund. And the power of our argument, Minister, I'm sure you'll agree with me, is in the power of...
Alun Davies: Thank you, Minister. I appreciate that.
Alun Davies: There is, of course, another crisis in access to NHS dentistry, which isn't simply a consequence of the pandemic, and that is the consequence of the lack of availability of NHS dental services. This affects many parts of the country, but is a particular issue at the moment in Ebbw Vale, where my constituents are simply unable to access NHS dentistry. It is profoundly worrying that a child...
Alun Davies: I'm grateful, Presiding Officer; I'm grateful to you for allowing this question this afternoon. I think many of us will have seen the footage coming out of Ukraine last night of doctors and paramedics trying to save the life of a six-year-old girl—a girl who was simply going about her daily life and was murdered by the Russian military. You don't have indiscriminate attacks without...
Alun Davies: Like others, I would like to start my contribution this afternoon by saying a few words about Aled Roberts. Llywydd, you and many Members here will recall his contributions in this Chamber, and I recall him speaking clearly and bringing people together. One of the things that Aled could do was unite people, create an idea and bring people together around that idea. I know that, when I started...
Alun Davies: I listened to what you said; you say that we've had an opportunity to design a specific UK-wide subsidy control regime in this instance. Do you, therefore, regret that the UK Government has ignored all the representations made by both the Welsh Government and this Senedd?
Alun Davies: Name one that it has accepted.
Alun Davies: I'm grateful to you, Deputy Presiding Officer, and I'm grateful for the opportunity to bring forward this legislative proposal. Members who have had the opportunity to note the legislation I propose—well, those eagle-eyed Members, certainly—will note a certain familiarity with the wording. It is, of course, the wording that was accepted as an amendment in the House of Lords last October....
Alun Davies: We also know that Natural Resources Wales prepares river basin management plans for each of the three river basin districts in Wales, and these plans should impact water quality and they should set environmental objectives and implement a programme of measures to protect and improve the environment. Whilst I welcome the fact that NRW does have the ability and should set these management...
Alun Davies: I'm grateful to you, Deputy Presiding Officer. I'm grateful to all Members who've participated in our debate, or our conversation, actually—it felt more like a conversation between individuals rather than a more formal debate. I'm grateful to Janet Finch-Saunders for the way in which she described some of the impacts of plastic waste, and it played straight into some of the points that were...
Alun Davies: —that you suggested, Minister, and I hope that the relevant committee, in taking forward this work, will be able to recommend to this Senedd that we enact that legislation, and together all of us deliver the sort of framework that we require to take care of our rivers for future generations. Thank you very much.
Alun Davies: Will you take an intervention?
Alun Davies: I hesitate to stop you in full flow, but you say it's not the parties that are the problem, but Westminster. Would you therefore agree with me that rather than pass motions and send these requests to Westminster, these powers should be here for us to determine and for us to decide?
Alun Davies: What consideration did the Minister give to the funding of the Tech Valleys programme in allocating the budget for the economy portfolio?
Alun Davies: Will you take an intervention, Mark?
Alun Davies: We are talking about devolving the police, not devolving crime.
Alun Davies: It's a real pleasure to participate in this debate and follow that contribution from John Griffiths, and also the contributions from Jane Dodds and other in this debate. When I took responsibility for the policy area in the last Government, it shocked me just how poorly the whole criminal justice system serves Wales. It cannot be seen as a success when, for however long we've had the joint...
Alun Davies: Yes, but most have improved considerably since then. Unfortunately, the system that serves Wales is yet to find a way of serving women, and you need to reflect on that in making your argument. It's an important point that we need to raise, because we have been on a journey here. I remember sitting in Government offices having long conversations with Carl Sargeant on these matters when he...
