Suzy Davies: It could well be that that question has arisen because so much emphasis has been on social care workers within care homes. I've got a question about those who administer personal and intimate care to children in school settings. I think we can agree that the communication of prioritising these individuals wasn't fantastic—you admitted as much last week, Minister. But the education Minister...
Suzy Davies: Thank you very much, Llywydd. Minister, the number of teachers who speak or are able to work through the medium of Welsh has remained quite stable over a period of years now. Estyn describes applications this year for initial teacher training as an increase, although the Education Workforce Council is a little more guarded on the issue and a little more realistic than that. So, why didn't...
Suzy Davies: Thank you for that. I know that it is difficult, but I was wondering whether you'd be interested in degree-level apprenticeships, for example, for teachers who come via different vocational backgrounds rather than through the academic system that we're seeing at the moment. That could be something to be considered. I'd like to move on now to another issue. Almost immediately after the...
Suzy Davies: Yes, thank you for that. I hope you will be able to share any new data that shows any progress on the Cymraeg 2050 target, including any new ideas that we may not have considered in the past and which would work. I'd now like to look particularly at any progress in Welsh language apprenticeships, and how we can mainstream more Welsh language skills in English-medium apprenticeships. We will...
Suzy Davies: Can I just offer my thanks to the design and delivery advisory group as well? I don't suppose they were expecting to do this work. I think the necessity for your announcement last week and this statement today, Minister, shows how close we are to the edge with education at the moment, and I know you're making decisions that you'd rather not make. So, my questions today are no reflection on...
Suzy Davies: Thank you very much, Minister, for this statement. I've been saying that there is an unconscious choice of language very often and we need to face up to that if we are to have a successful policy. So, I'm pleased to see this move towards a better understanding of the role of language within the family dynamic. And in looking at the recommendations in the policy, I turn to the second, that...
Suzy Davies: How is the Welsh Government working with the UK Government to improve the strength and quality of broadband access to homes in Wales where people are working or learning?
Suzy Davies: South Wales West is already experiencing its own economic shocks, not least due to the exposure of supply chains, which feed into the now fragile hospitality, tourism and leisure sector. Minister, you've recognised that fragility with ring-fenced financial support for many front-line businesses, but, of course, they still won't be buying stock or committing to capital improvements at this...
Suzy Davies: Mike Hedges has been raising this in our weekly meetings with the local health board for as long as I can remember, so I'm glad that we're having the opportunity to discuss it today. It's not the only big operation in South Wales West that's been dealing with big figures, though; we have had some difficult news from Tata and from Amazon as well, which have also seen a rise in cases. I've had...
Suzy Davies: Can I just associate myself with David Rees's remarks and the thanks that he conveyed? I think we've all been amazed by the response to this, not least by the community. Anyone who's been through a flooding experience knows how distressing it is, and when you've got all this dirty water, it genuinely is heartbreaking. This local authority, of course, has had to deal with the Aberdulais floods...
Suzy Davies: Thank you, Dirprwy Lywydd, and can I thank all Members for their contributions? No-one is suggesting this is easy, which is why congratulating the UK Government on securing supplies so quickly really shouldn't have been very difficult. But I'm afraid, Minister, that you and the First Minister have made this a far more fraught experience that it needed to be, because of the poor communication...
Suzy Davies: 1. What criteria will the Welsh Government be using to decide when outdoor visitor attractions will be able to reopen? OQ56204
Suzy Davies: Thank you for that answer. Obviously, the sector understands the need to reopen safely, but this is the time of the year when they have to make significant spending decisions, and to that end they're seeking as much information as possible to help them know how long they have to plan to stay closed as opposed to open. I think the prospect of a safe May election has given them some hope that...
Suzy Davies: Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd, and thank you to everyone who's taken part in this debate. As Mark Isherwood said at the beginning, it's never been so important as now to be discussing what we're discussing today. A number of Members have referred to the hope that we will all die well, and the role of palliative services in that is absolutely critical. I think what I picked up from the debate today...
Suzy Davies: Diolch yn fawr, Llywydd. Thank you very much. I'd like to give a minute each to Mike Hedges and Laura Jones. Two weeks ago, I was eager to join the Minister and others at the Universities Wales civic mission showcase, and I'm pretty sure, Minister, in your response, you'll agree that it was a little oasis of nourishment and positivity when so many of us have been bound up in the challenges...
Suzy Davies: Now, what talking to Lucy Jenkins, the force of nature who leads the MFL student mentoring project, has done is made me better understand what my own experience actually was all those years ago. And those two examples show what that was, and that was being given the facility to play with languages, to see the connections and to be able to guess what something means, to take some risks and...
Suzy Davies: Will the Minister make a statement on how the 2021-22 budget will benefit town centre regeneration in South Wales West?
Suzy Davies: Can I just associate myself with the remarks of David Rees with regard to how people have really stepped up to the plate in Skewen? Two weeks ago, on the back of his topical question, I asked the local government Minister a question that she didn't answer, but I think you might be able to—maybe you're better placed to do that. Obviously, with the Skewen floods, the focus was very much on...
Suzy Davies: Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd. Afternoon, Minister. We were all very relieved, of course, to hear you announce that primary schools will be open for face-to-face learning for foundation phase pupils after half term. However, with just three days to go until half term, we've seen the publication overnight of the guidance that schools have been clamouring for for some days now. Only this morning,...
Suzy Davies: Thank you for that. And I'm taking it from that as well that the trade unions are satisfied with the steps that are now in place, certainly for the foundation phase years. I'm hoping that they'll feel the same for secondary schools as well, because, as we know, Welsh Government's position at the moment is that it's pressures on the NHS that determines which parts of our society are released...
