Carwyn Jones: The Member puts it well, and I could not improve on that, but he’s right to say that we have certainty now; we’ll have no certainty if we choose to leave next Thursday. It’s a jump off the edge of a cliff. I noted today that—. I saw a letter signed by various backbenchers and Ministers from London, saying that funding would be guaranteed, but they have no such power—no such...
Carwyn Jones: Well, the issue with Bosch was that—. It’s right to say that the factory did move to Hungary. Most of those people who were employed there found jobs elsewhere, actually, very quickly. Renishaw now, of course, own the site and Renishaw are developing very, very quickly. But, we need to be careful here, because we are successful at attracting investment from other countries. So, it does...
Carwyn Jones: I do. I think we have to remember that the European money that we have seen coming into Wales is money that was not provided by successive British Governments in the 1980s and 1990s; it did not come to Wales. This is extra money that the Tories in the 1980s and 1990s would not provide for Wales. We still have a situation where the Barnett formula has not been addressed properly. At least we...
Carwyn Jones: Well, it depends what you mean by ‘competitive’. If it’s going to plummet, that, as he knows full well, will drive inflation, because we import so much. More than anything else, what the steel industry needs is a market, and, if it cannot enter the European market or any other world market without a tariff being imposed, then the steel industry doesn’t have a future. The UK is not big...
Carwyn Jones: As a pro-business Government we are delivering on a range of actions to help new and existing businesses to develop, grow and prosper.
Carwyn Jones: I will. As I say, half of what we export goes to the EU—half of it. You interfere with that market at your peril. Many of our largest employers—Ford, for example, in my own constituency—are part of a European operation. That’s why accessing the European market is all-essential for them; that’s why they’re in the UK. There’s no incentive for them to stay in the UK if they can’t...
Carwyn Jones: Well, the thing is to ensure that a development bank is established, and to use that structure to strengthen and enhance the advice that is available to businesses. It is an age-old problem as regards accessing procurement and accessing capital. We’ve worked very hard with businesses to ensure that more and more businesses from Wales are able to secure these contracts, particularly in the...
Carwyn Jones: If the Member would write to me with that invitation I will of course consider it. He makes a strong case for the scheme that he has mentioned. We’re always keen to make sure that we look at schemes that have worked effectively across the whole of Wales in order to see how they can be rolled out across the rest of the country.
Carwyn Jones: Yes, they’re set out in our manifesto.
Carwyn Jones: We’ve not abandoned the commitment to consult people on the future structure of the health service in the north, no; that commitment remains in place.
Carwyn Jones: The Member is right to say that medicine and nursing is a global market; people travel the world with the qualifications that they have, and, of course, there are a number of nurses and doctors working in the NHS in Wales who come from other European Union countries or outwith the European Union, for example, the nurses in the hospital in Bridgend who come from the Philippines, very many of...
Carwyn Jones: I think the Member’s comments would have been fair at one time; I don’t think they’re fair now. We obviously put Betsi Cadwaladr into special measures. We know that there were problems—
Carwyn Jones: I take what the Member says. I don’t think the comments are correct now. We put Betsi Cadwaladr into special measures. We have seen significant improvements—ambulance times, for example, were one thing—in terms of the delivery of services in the area. And rightly so because it was quite clear to us at the time that the local health board was not delivering as it should—certainly it...
Carwyn Jones: That guidance already exists. The regulators’ code sets out good practice in how regulatory functions should be exercised, and local authorities are encouraged to act within the code.
Carwyn Jones: I wasn’t aware. I know where The Union is in Tremadog. [Laughter.] I know full well where The Union Inn is, but I must say he has caught me there in terms of the detail. I will write to him, of course. He raises an issue that is important to The Union Inn, I understand that—or indeed to any pub, and pubs have faced difficulty for many years because of changing habits. I will investigate...
Carwyn Jones: It won’t come as a surprise to the Member when I say that I will work closely with the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Local Government. And, of course, we will seek to provide local government with an appropriate level of funding, bearing in mind the level of funding we ourselves get from the UK Government.
Carwyn Jones: Ensuring that the Welsh language prospers in Wales remains a priority for the Welsh Government, and we will continue to deliver the priorities set out in the ‘Bwrw Mlaen’, with a focus on increasing people’s use of the language. We also want to improve planning and develop the infrastructure through technology and standards and increasing Welsh language education also.
Carwyn Jones: The Welsh language is a priority for me as one who comes from an entirely Welsh-speaking family and one who has children attending a Welsh-medium school. Therefore, this is something that is prospering across Government, although there is a Minister that has individual responsibility for the language. There will be a full statement during Eisteddfod week on the details of how we are going to...
Carwyn Jones: I very warmly welcome the opening of that centre—we’ve invested in it. Of course, the Swansea valley is an area that has gone from being a majority Welsh-speaking area to an area where the Welsh language tends to be spoken at the top of the valley—that has happened in a period of 30 years, which is a substantial decline in that time. It’s very important that we ensure that the Welsh...
Carwyn Jones: A pilot project is taking place in the Teifi valley to ensure that businesses don’t feel that it’s too difficult to ensure that a Welsh-language service is provided, and also to demonstrate that this is something that would be commercially beneficial to them, so that they can provide services to those who wish to use the Welsh language, or those who feel that it is important that that...
