Siân Gwenllian: Thank you very much. The debate started this afternoon with Neil Hamilton agreeing with much that is in the ‘Reaching the Million’ document. So, I don’t quite understand why we have to go after one aspect alone in the amendment that doesn’t genuinely contribute to the vision and leadership that we need in this area. Suzy Davies emphasised the need to increase confidence, and I agree...
Siân Gwenllian: Excellent. Well, there are so many festivals—
Siân Gwenllian: Oh, it’s this weekend. Well, do go to Llangrannog, everyone. And then Dai spoke about the need to promote the Welsh language in all areas, and the need for an arm’s-length body to do that important work. So, to conclude, speaking Welsh and speaking English fluently make me who I am. The Welsh language opens the door to me to a rich culture that dates back to the sixth century. The...
Siân Gwenllian: 2. Will the First Minister make a statement on staff redundancies in Welsh universities? OAQ(5)0727(FM)[W]
Siân Gwenllian: I’d like to congratulate my local university, Bangor, because that’s the only university in Wales to win a gold award under the UK Government’s teaching excellence framework, which is a wonderful result, confirming that Bangor University is maintaining excellent standards of teaching and learning consistently for its students, and that the provision in Bangor is of the highest quality...
Siân Gwenllian: You have published a very important document today, and it is a positive initial step on the journey to reach that target of 1 million Welsh speakers by 2050. The Government has identified key themes that will need to be prioritised in terms of increasing the number of Welsh speakers. Of course, the minutiae, the work programme and the action points, are what will be important as we move...
Siân Gwenllian: I’d like to make a few general comments before going into detail on group 4. Plaid Cymru is supportive of this Bill introduced by Labour, but we wish to note that the Blair or Brown Governments didn’t take the opportunitiy to scrap many of those policies introduced by Thatcher—measures that continue to undermine the rights of workers to this day. It’s important that we bear that in...
Siân Gwenllian: Plaid Cymru will be voting against amendment 8 in group 5, which has been tabled in the name of Janet Finch-Saunders, because it does restrict the Government from introducing the Bill until an impact assessment has been completed and reported back to the Assembly. This is an entirely transparent attempt by the Conservatives to prevent the Bill from passing before the Wales Act is enacted....
Siân Gwenllian: 3. Will the Cabinet Secretary make a statement on higher education funding in north Wales? OAQ(5)0159(EDU)[W]
Siân Gwenllian: Since your announcement yesterday on increasing tuition fees, I have received a large number of messages from students studying in Bangor, as well as from school pupils who hope to go on to university. During the election, thousands of students and young people across the country were inspired by politics once again, partly because they had seen some of the political parties being willing to...
Siân Gwenllian: A surgery in my constituency in Pen-y-groes, Dyffyn Nantlle, is to close at the end of the month, leaving the area with one fewer doctor. Now, I’ve been seeking information about this since I heard rumours that the service was to be lost. I wrote to the Cabinet Secretary for health on 24 April, copied to the chief executive of Betsi Cadwaladr—I didn’t get a response. I wrote again on 23...
Siân Gwenllian: Thank you, Cabinet Secretary, for your willingness to have an ongoing dialogue on these issues and issues within your portfolio. The complexity of all of these levels of government created, as well as where accountability lies and where the scrutiny happens—that is what emerges for me, having listened to your statement today. Specifically, I do have a great concern that the relationship...
Siân Gwenllian: Plaid Cymru will support proceeding with this legislation today. It’s about time that it happened. It puts right a historic error that has contributed to an inadequate supply of social housing in Wales. Every week I, like many of you, have people coming to my surgery with housing problems—people living in inappropriate social housing, or they live with relatives, are about to become...
Siân Gwenllian: So, it is about time that we made progress in this area, and we do need the investment, too. I agree with what David Melding has said—we do need that investment also, which will bring forward a new wave of social housing. This legislation alone won’t solve the problem of a shortage of supply of social housing, but unlike the Conservatives we do believe that it is part of the jigsaw....
Siân Gwenllian: I’d like to remind everyone that Plaid Cymru strongly opposed the Trade Union Act of the UK state when it was brought forward during the last Assembly. We also opposed all of the amendments presented by the Conservatives in this place throughout the journey of this Bill during this Assembly term, challenging every tireless attempt by the Conservatives to attack workers’ rights in the...
Siân Gwenllian: Will the Cabinet Secretary make a statement on the provision of medical services through the medium of Welsh?
Siân Gwenllian: The Dolwenith surgery in Penygroes is closing at the end of the month and nobody will replace the GP who’s retiring. He was the only one providing Welsh-medium services in an area of 5,000 people where three quarters are Welsh speakers. The valley will have fewer doctors per head than the Welsh average and yesterday, in a very poor statement, you said that you wouldn’t be establishing a...
Siân Gwenllian: Small sums of money can make a very great difference to some families who have a disabled child or disabled children. I’ve mentioned specifics in this Chamber in terms of families in my constituency who have benefited from small grants assisting in improving the quality of life of disabled children, including improving mental health, strengthening family relationships and increasing leisure...
Siân Gwenllian: From what I understand, the emphasis of the counter-poverty work that used to be carried out by Communities First will be on early years education, helping people into work and empowering communities—those will be the focuses now—which is what you refer to as the three Es: early years, employability and empowerment. I would like to understand, and I think the people in the sector also...
Siân Gwenllian: I’m going to focus on the recommendation relating to north Wales, as you would expect. During the last week of the last term, we had a short statement from the Welsh Government stating that it did not support the case for the creation of a medical school in Bangor because it is a long process and because it is a very costly one. Now, perhaps it is going to be a long process, but that, in...
