Carwyn Jones: Of course.
Carwyn Jones: Yes, it’s recognised as a problem—that’s the issue. I do remind him that the White Paper was not drawn up in a pub one night between two parties. There was a great deal of work involved in drawing that up as well, and it did pre-date the UK Government White Paper. The reality is that, as things stand, when we leave the EU, if somebody wished to come into the UK without being detected,...
Carwyn Jones: Okay, right. Steffan Lewis made the points that he did. He mentioned the issue of the single market. I don’t believe that the issue of the single market is reserved. Developing David Melding’s points, the UK relinquished control over certain agricultural powers in 1973 to the European Community, then the European Union. It then relinquished all its other agricultural powers to this...
Carwyn Jones: Social care is a sector of national strategic importance. It has been protected through investment of an additional £55 million for 2017-18, alongside £60 million for the integrated care fund.
Carwyn Jones: Of course, I’ve alluded to the integrated care fund and the money that’s been invested in that, and, of course, the new funding that’s already been announced. We see this having an effect, bearing in mind the transfer from hospital to care and that that kind of delay is actually at its lowest level for 12 years.
Carwyn Jones: ‘Is there an election on Thursday?’, I ask myself. I’m sure that was all to do with the question that was asked. What I would say to the Member is this: I think authorities across Wales have done very well in providing social services, despite the cuts that have come from her party, and her party in Government indeed in London. We have seen the crisis in social care in England. That’s...
Carwyn Jones: I very much applaud the work of Merthyr council, and I look forward to that work continuing in the next weeks to come.
Carwyn Jones: I think the Member does raise an important point in that regard. We know that demand continues to increase, and there have to be debates in society as to how that demand is to be met. That does mean there have to be discussions between the Governments of the UK, because people move between the countries of the UK, but we have ensured that there is sufficient funding for social care. We’ve...
Carwyn Jones: Work is ongoing to determine the appropriate approach to ensuring sustainable medical education and training within north Wales. The Cabinet Secretary for Health, Well-being and Sport will be making a statement in the coming weeks.
Carwyn Jones: As I said, there will be a statement over the ensuing weeks, and the Minister will be considering this over this week and the next. So, a statement will be made soon. But it’s vitally important that we ensure that any plans are ultimately sustainable, and that is part of the consideration being given to this issue.
Carwyn Jones: Well, the issue is, of course, that Bangor is in an area where the population is quite small, compared to other centres where there is a medical school. So, there are issues in terms of how such a medical school could work closely with other medical schools—in Wales, or in England, or elsewhere, for that matter. What’s hugely important is that any medical school is sustainable, and that...
Carwyn Jones: Well, the campaign that we have in place to recruit medical staff is working well. We’ve had a great deal of interest from those in all areas of medicine. Ultimately, lifestyle is important for people, but professional challenge is important. People want to go somewhere where they will find their work interesting, where they feel they will be challenged from a medical point of view, and, of...
Carwyn Jones: I think it’s hugely important we see more bobbies on the beat, more police officers—10,000 of them. I think people will certainly support that. He asked the question of where the money comes from. Quite simple—£300 million a year over the course of five years; £2.7 billion is the pot that will be created by reinstating the previous levels of capital gains tax. So, £1.5 billion, with...
Carwyn Jones: Well, it simply takes the rate back to what it was before—from 20 per cent to 28 per cent on the higher level, and from 18 per cent upwards on the lower level. That’s the way in which this will be paid for. That simply means reinstating a tax rate that was there before, not something that is new.
Carwyn Jones: Neil Hamilton and UKIP—soft on crime. You heard it here in this Assembly for the first time. Not supportive of policy to increase the number of bobbies on the beat, to increase the number of police officers in our communities. We’ve explained how this will be paid for—by reinstating the previous rate of capital gains tax. I do not see his point about pensioners losing out because of...
Carwyn Jones: I’m not sure I understand that question. I do know that Labour has a better chance of winning the election, perhaps, than Plaid Cymru does. But, from our perspective, we will work hard as, indeed, I know her party will, to maximise as many votes as possible between now and 8 June.
Carwyn Jones: We did last year. Welsh Labour showed that it could defend the people of Wales last year and the Welsh people voted as they did, and we’ll continue to do the same this year. From our perspective, we will be standing up for Wales in Westminster. We do not want the Tories to walk all over Wales.
Carwyn Jones: Well, it’s always been a myth in Plaid Cymru that Plaid Cymru stands for the Welsh national interest. If that was true, they’d be doing far better in elections than they are. And I do deplore the idea that, somehow, one party has a monopoly on patriotism or in terms of defending Wales’s interest. Now, I know that, inevitably, over the next few weeks, we’re going to have questions in...
Carwyn Jones: Look, we've just had a report last week where the cancer drug fund was shown to have wasted £1 billion of public money. So, I'm not going to be lectured on that by the Conservative party. [Interruption.] He asked the question, and the answer is quite simply this: whenever we have a project like the Circuit of Wales, there will be risks. Those risks have to be managed acceptably. The Circuit...
Carwyn Jones: He doesn't understand the way state-aid rules work. Normally, when state-aid rules are breached, it’s the recipient that pays back, not the Government. From our perspective, we will assess the situation to see that the risk is acceptable. Two things that have to be made about the Circuit of Wales: firstly, the auditor general has not said that this is a project not worth supporting, nor has...
