Dawn Bowden: 4. Will the Cabinet Secretary make a statement on the impact of the UK Government's financial austerity policies on Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney? OAQ51421
Dawn Bowden: Thank you for that answer, Cabinet Secretary. I'm sure you will recall that in 2011, the then Tory Chancellor said that his budget was 'about doing what we can to help families with the cost of living'. He added: 'we have already asked the British people for what is needed, and today we do not need to ask for more'. Well, six years later, many people in our communities are still paying the...
Dawn Bowden: 5. Will the Leader of the House provide an update on Welsh Government support for migrant workers in Wales in preparation for Brexit? OAQ51408
Dawn Bowden: Can I thank the leader of the house for that answer? Irrespective of our views on the merits of Brexit, there are thousands of migrant workers in Wales, including in my own constituency, who do important work and deserve total clarity as we negotiate our future arrangements with the EU. Would the leader of the house agree that while the UK Government has published a technical document for...
Dawn Bowden: Over the weekend, I did a shift collecting food at Tesco in Merthyr with the Merthyr Cynon Foodbank. It was just a couple of hours of my time to assist the food bank volunteers—volunteers who give many hours of their time, week-in, week-out, to provide invaluable support to people at their time of greatest need. Can I say that while I'm willing to do what I can to assist the work of the...
Dawn Bowden: David Melding has actually just touched very briefly on the Unison event that took place recently. I wonder, First Minister, if you would join me in welcoming successful initiatives like the Unison mental health in the workplace conference that was organised in the Pierhead building, which I think once again showed the central role that trade unions can play in helping to tackle difficult...
Dawn Bowden: Can I thank the Cabinet Secretary for his statement? I want to take this opportunity to reflect on a couple of my recent experiences in my area, which I think reinforce a number of the points that you've raised in your statement. Can I start by saying—? I'd just like to take a moment, really, to stress that Merthyr Tydfil is not the town that was portrayed in the tv series Valley Cops. I...
Dawn Bowden: Can I thank the Cabinet Secretary for bringing forward this important statement? Before I get to the main issues that I want to ask you about, I'd like to just make a few comments on how the strategic approach to transport has to reflect our wider ambitions for the Valleys. Because it's not just a matter of effective and efficient transport—as important as that is—but it is also about...
Dawn Bowden: 8. Will the First Minister make a statement on the 21st Century Schools investment programme in Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney? OAQ51549
Dawn Bowden: Thank you for that answer, First Minister. I recently had the great pleasure of officially opening the new refurbished buildings at Ysgol Afon Taf in my constituency and I saw, at first hand, the benefits of the investment by Welsh Government in the future of young learners there. I'm sure you'll agree that such a development shows the clear benefits of our capital investment in...
Dawn Bowden: Can I first of all thank the Cabinet Secretary for his statement on this very important report, the recommendations of which are welcome to those of us who have worked in and with our health and social care system over a number of years? I'd also like to add my thanks to Ruth Hussey and her team for the work they've put in to delivering it. I'm going to try not to repeat a number of the...
Dawn Bowden: Yes, I am. I am, yes.
Dawn Bowden: I've got a series of questions that—
Dawn Bowden: Okay. Well, my second point is about the process of negotiating necessary change and the need to involve the staff in that. I know from my own experience that that change does require patience and persuasion and communication, but, most of all, it involves taking people with you, because to resist change does lead to stagnation, both for the people the service has to deliver to and the people...
Dawn Bowden: Thank you for those answers, Minister. Can you agree that, obviously, the best way to reduce plastic packaging is to reduce it at its source? Obviously, we're very encouraged to hear about Iceland's intentions to stop using plastic packaging in their goods within five years. With that in mind, I just wondered whether you've held any discussions with businesses in Wales to seek an end to the...
Dawn Bowden: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. The fine Gothic former synagogue in Merthyr Tydfil had served the Jewish community there since the 1870s. The Jewish community at Merthyr reached its peak in the 1930s, but having now largely disappeared from the town, there are still signs of their presence, including the Jewish cemetery in Cefn Coed. In 1955, there was held, and I quote, 'an impressive...
Dawn Bowden: As a member of the committee, I largely welcome the response of the Welsh Government to the report as we continue to develop and strengthen the primary care clusters in the years ahead. My overriding impression from the evidence we took in this inquiry is that, for many, it was too soon to take an informed decision or an informed view on the overall success of the clusters. So, I do think...
Dawn Bowden: Leader of the house, last week, the Cabinet Secretary for Finance gave a response to the urgent question regarding the collapse of Carillion. Many Members in this Chamber would echo the passionate way in which the Cabinet Secretary highlighted the weakness in the UK Government procurement policy that has contributed to the current mess that the public sector now, largely, has to deal with....
Dawn Bowden: Can I also join others in thanking Russell George and the committee for this report? The report certainly highlights a number of very important issues about the need to focus on delivering improved outcomes for our communities from the deals, and to avoid the burden of bureaucracy that runs throughout that report. And that's never easy because, for example, since this particular scrutiny work...
Dawn Bowden: Leader of the house, you'll recall that last year I tabled a Member's legislative motion aimed at outlawing here in Wales the shameful practice known as sex for rent. This evening, the tv series Ein Byd will be showing shocking footage about the alarming sex-for-rent problem now facing some young people in our communities, and I believe the programme will reveal the true nature of the problem...
