Rhun ap Iorwerth: Formally.
Rhun ap Iorwerth: These are very important amendments. We will be voting against the Government amendments, because that is necessary in order to have a vote on the other amendments in the group. Our view on this has been consistent throughout the discussion of this legislation. We believe quite simply that the citizen voice body should be appointed by the National Assembly for Wales and not by Welsh...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: However you want to spin it, there will always be a perceived conflict of interest when the body that is most needed to stand up for the patients—in other words, be critical, where necessary, of the running of the service—is directly appointed by the Minister. This is one of the other key reasons why we cannot support this Bill. We know, at least in parts of Wales, the community health...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Just to remind you of the words that I used in my contribution—however these bodies or individuals or commissioners act, I said that there is a clear perception of a conflict of interest, and that, too, is very important when we're trying to build trust with the electorate.
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Just a few words to say that we will support this amendment. I do believe that it’s crucial, if we are to attract people to give of their time to work in areas such as this, for the benefit of the public, that they have the necessary support to do that. It’s clear to us that it’s important that both staff and volunteers should have the appropriate legal cover for being involved in these...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: As I've already noted, we have our concerns about the nature of the citizen voice body that the Government is proposing to set up. But if it is going to be set up, then we have to ensure that it has the ability to operate in a way that has force and power behind it. And, of course, having the appropriate level of resources is vital in that. Once again, I think that I expect the Government to...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: We too will be supporting this amendment. We do believe that this will add to the efficiency of the CVB.
Rhun ap Iorwerth: There are five amendments in this group. We will be supporting the three that have just been described by the Conservatives. Amendment 59 is a Government amendment that is a step forward from what we had previously—it talks of the need for the citizen voice body to represent everyone in all parts of Wales. But, do you know what? Those are words, and what we've tried to do through drawing up...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Thank you for taking the intervention. You've referred a couple of times now to Powys. Speak directly to my constituents and people in the north of Wales—and I explained how I believe this is perceived by them—how do you explain to them that the citizen voice body that you are proposing will be more independent, will be holding you firmer to account, than the community health council and...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Our amendments here specify that not only should Welsh Ministers be able to be recipients of representation by the CVB, as is proposed by the Conservatives, but that if they do receive representation the Government then has to provide a response. So, I would ask the Conservatives to perhaps look at ours as an improvement on their amendment—or at the very least, if your amendments fall, that...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Formally.
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Formally.
Rhun ap Iorwerth: I can confirm that I and the group will be supporting these amendments. The reason for that is that I think that there is a means here of encouraging better joint working, particularly where complaints relate to that space where the interaction truly happens between health and social care.
Rhun ap Iorwerth: As this strengthens the Bill, we will reluctantly support it, but we would like to make the point that, actually, we don't want NHS bodies or local authorities to refuse to supply information in the first place. We would really like to see more than just a requirement for written reasons to be provided for refusing information, but the CVB, I guess, had to have the ability to challenge such...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Very briefly, we have felt that it's vital to give the new citizen voice body the power to enter premises where domiciliary care is provided, and although neither, actually, of these amendments reflect the strength that we would like this power to have, we will be supporting both the amendments in the hope that the Minister will continue to provide us with the assurance that we need that the...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: We are comfortable with both these amendments, because they impose duties on the NHS and local authorities to co-operate with the new citizen voice body and are necessary to provide that body with the powers that it would need. We'd actually suggest that the Conservative amendment is the stronger of the two, because it also requires the NHS and local authorities to assist the citizen voice...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: We will be supporting this amendment. This amendment is common sense, but it’s also an opportunity for me to thank those who have been volunteering over the years within the community health councils. I’ve had the pleasure and privilege of meeting and having discussions with very many of them over the past years, and have witnessed the commitment that exists to ensuring that they as...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: I'm very pleased to be able to support this amendment tabled by the Welsh Government, which has been tabled following collaboration between the Government and ourselves. The result is that we bring this new citizen voice body under the scope of Welsh language regulations, and ensure that the Welsh Language Commissioner can provide compliance notices. So, I'm pleased the Government has moved...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: A brief point of order.
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Members will have been made aware that, during this Stage 3 debate this evening, there has been confirmation of a significant increase in confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Wales: seven new infections found after contact tracing took place in relation to the man from Neath Port Talbot who tested positive at the weekend; two residents of Carmarthenshire who'd returned from Italy. Now, under...
