Luke Fletcher: With over three quarters of all Welsh land being comprised of farmland, it's important that we utilise the products from this land on our journey to net zero. There is no product more natural than sheep's wool. Unfortunately, the price of a fleece of wool sits at around 20p—a price that is dwarfed by the £1.40 it costs to shear. I know that the Welsh Government pledged to use more wool in...
Luke Fletcher: Diolch, Llywydd. In a report published this year, the Bevan Foundation found that Wales has some of the weakest provisions for community rights of ownership and control in the UK. Another report found that communities face a now arduous and demoralising process, and that it was extremely likely that the situation in Wales has led to many assets being permanently lost to communities. Assets...
Luke Fletcher: Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd. This pilot is very welcome, especially for those of us in the Siambr who have campaigned or are campaigning for a universal basic income. Granted, this isn't a universal basic income, but it is a basic income, and it still will provide us with valuable data and direction in our journey to a universal one. We've talked about our reasons for supporting UBI in the past....
Luke Fletcher: Thank you to the Minister for the statement.
Luke Fletcher: Co-operation is key on the matter of trade, and it’s welcome to hear Sam Kurtz’s view on this. We are both on the Economy, Trade and Rural Affairs Committee, and the evidence, in my view at least, has been clear that, throughout the post-Brexit process, the UK Government has failed to consult and engage with the Welsh Government consistently and meaningfully on issues of trade. We have to...
Luke Fletcher: To build on Jane's question, and it's a question that I'm sure the Minister expects every time she sees a question on greyhounds or if there's any opportunity that I can ever link greyhounds to a supplementary question, I was wondering if the Minister is now in a position to provide an update on including greyhound racing as part of the future licensing scheme as set out in the animal welfare...
Luke Fletcher: Will the First Minister provide an update on the potential broadening of the winter fuel support scheme?
Luke Fletcher: Thank you to the Minister for the statement. I want to refer to paragraph 4 of your statement today, which talks about raising ambition. I assume that this includes Welsh language skills too, which is to be welcomed, of course, but I have to raise my concern about the situation in Bridgend county council. Once again I find myself getting up in this Chamber to raise concerns about the...
Luke Fletcher: 2. What discussions has the Commission had with the Remuneration Board regarding changes to the Members' support staff pension scheme? OQ58326
Luke Fletcher: Thank you for that response, Llywydd.
Luke Fletcher: A disparity for employer pension contributions between Members' support staff and Senedd Commission staff was recently brought to my attention. At the moment, Members' support staff can expect a 10 per cent employer pension contribution, whereas the equivalent amount for Commission staff is 26.6 per cent. I was wondering if the Commission could take another look at this, or indeed encourage...
Luke Fletcher: Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd. Firstly, I'd like to thank the Business Committee for allocating time to this proposal and I thank Members who've already expressed support. I'd also like to thank the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, Dogs Trust, Blue Cross and Cats Protection for their support in the run-up to this debate. It's estimated that roughly half of households in Wales...
Luke Fletcher: Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd, and I’d like to thank the Minister for her response and Members from across the Chamber for their contributions. I think there’s, hopefully, cross-party agreement that there is a need to act here. I always hear a lot about Arthur. I haven’t actually met Arthur yet, but I think the point Jane made, and Jack as well, around homelessness and homeless people with...
Luke Fletcher: The Welsh Government's winter fuel support scheme sets out to support those most vulnerable, and it's valued by those who receive it, as Carolyn pointed out. But my concern lies with those that don't receive it. My constituent Michelle is a disabled full-time unpaid carer for her disabled husband. They depend on their personal independence payments and her carers allowance to survive. As she...
Luke Fletcher: Diolch, Llywydd. One hundred billion pounds a year—that's how much the Financial Times estimates that not being a part of the single market and customs union has cost the UK. On top of that, £40 billion less revenue to the Treasury a year and the UK lagging behind the rest of the G7 in pandemic recovery. That's where we're at. Not being part of the single market is undeniably making us...
Luke Fletcher: My thanks to John Griffiths for yielding a portion of his time. This is an important debate to have, and I agree wholeheartedly that knowledge provides that route out of poverty. Members know this already about me, but I was on free school meals and the education maintenance allowance growing up and, before I came into politics, I was a bartender. I'm not sure if John remembers—I hope he...
Luke Fletcher: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer, and thank you, Minister, for the statement. Certainly, it's good to see progress being made in this area.
Luke Fletcher: From the outset, I'd like to reiterate Plaid Cymru's support for the young person's guarantee, and our desire, similar to that of the Welsh Conservatives, to work constructively with the Government on this. Especially during this cost-of-living crisis, I think it's important that young people feel that there is an opportunity in Wales, and this, of course, plays a part in ensuring that. Of...
Luke Fletcher: Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd. I'm sure the Minister can guess what I'm about to draw his attention to. I raised with you last week my concerns with the speed at which Bridgend are going in relation to Welsh-medium education. Looking at the Welsh in education strategic plan published by Bridgend County Borough Council, they state that the Welsh Government has set the target of increasing...
Luke Fletcher: 1. Will the Minister make a statement on reports that child poverty rose in Wales during the pandemic despite falling across the rest of the UK nations? TQ657
