Vaughan Gething: Thank you. I do know a thing or two about the health service and investing in choices around our future workforce. Actually, it's one of the things we have consistently done. We've always, in my time as the Minister, but also Eluned Morgan as the new Minister, invested the maximum amount possible in terms of our future health workforce that our system can actually successfully train. What...
Vaughan Gething: Formally.
Vaughan Gething: Thank you, Llywydd. I move the motion before us, and I'm recommending to Members of the Senedd that we consent to the legislative consent motion on the Bill. As Members will be aware, I did not recommend the Senedd should consent to the Bill as introduced in the legislative consent memorandum laid on 3 December last year. However, following extensive engagement with the UK Government, they...
Vaughan Gething: Thank you, Llywydd, and thank you to Huw Irranca-Davies, acting as the Chair of the Legislation and Justice Committee. I should say that I'm quite happy to hear the gentle and calming tones of Mr Irranca-Davies on many occasions in this Chamber, and there are likely to be many more, given that there is likely to be more legislation that will require Welsh Ministers to consider whether or not...
Vaughan Gething: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. Last year, my predecessor published our cross-Government economic mission. It was clear then that a return to business as usual was not an option. The response to the pandemic has accelerated many of the existing trends across decarbonisation, digitisation and the impact of an ageing population. For businesses, the pandemic also brought very real trauma....
Vaughan Gething: As we know, in the weeks that followed, omicron turned economies back into emergency mode as we responded to the latest wave of COVID with actions delivered in partnership, based on evidence. This included a further round of business support with packages only available in Wales, such as the economic resilience fund. Similar funds, of course, were not available in England. Despite this...
Vaughan Gething: Thank you for the comments and the constructive tone of the response from the Conservative spokesperson. There are many things that we agree on as outline challenges that the country faces. We've talked regularly about the climate and nature emergency and the labour market inequality that the Member mentioned in his opening introduction, and our challenge is how we can address that, and the...
Vaughan Gething: Thank you for the comments and questions. Starting with your points about the co-operative economy, as you'd expect, being a Labour and Co-operative Member of the Senedd, it's something that I'm especially interested in. Of course, there are views across the Chamber. I recall Huw Irranca-Davies's debate on the potential for a Welsh Marcora law, and the work that I'm doing with him and the...
Vaughan Gething: I thank the Member for his contribution. He is consistent on his point that he believes there should be more targets across a range of areas. My view is that of course poverty is a significant part of what we are looking to do and the fight against poverty. And actually, if we weren't interested in that, we wouldn't be looking to have interventions, for example, in the employability and...
Vaughan Gething: Thank you for the question. We continue to take a range of measures to help improve economic opportunities for disabled people. That includes the establishment, in 2020, of a Welsh Government network of disabled people's employment champions to engage with employers to encourage the further employment of disabled people.
Vaughan Gething: Thank you for the question. You're right to point out the significant difference in economic outcomes for disabled people and people who don't have a disability. That's part of the reason why we shifted so much of our employability and skills plans to try to make sure that we helped people furthest from the labour market, including significant numbers of disabled people. As to the service we...
Vaughan Gething: Thank you for the question and for highlighting the work that People First do, not just in Carmarthen, but in other parts of the country. I have done work in my constituency role with Cardiff People First and, again, it's an organisation that actually has disabled people making their own choices and fronting a lot that the organisations do. So, I've had a very positive experience in seeing...
Vaughan Gething: Yes. I have discussed the recent purchase of Aberthaw with a number of members of the Cardiff capital region board. My officials continue to maintain a dialogue with the capital region on this and other matters as we look to exploit the potential for renewable energy in particular.
Vaughan Gething: So, this is part of where I think, actually—. There are areas where there's disagreement between the Welsh and the UK Governments, and, actually, the city deals and the regional deals that are taking place are an example of where we can work together. Of course, there's a wider investment fund, where the UK Government provided funds, as indeed have local authorities. The conversations my...
Vaughan Gething: Well, I don't think it's fair to say that the capital region is looking to lock in depressed graduate salaries. Actually, the ambition of the capital region, which is made up, as you know, of a partnership between 10 local authorities, of differing political leaderships, and the UK and Welsh Governments, is to lever in and engineer further growth, improved productivity, and actually raise...
Vaughan Gething: Well, you're right to say that our enterprise zones strategy needs to make sure that it's aligned with the broader work we're undertaking with partners. And I think, actually, it's a real strength that we're able to have a joint conversation, where the Welsh Government and local authorities in those regional groups and business organisations have a single voice, and it's interesting that that...
Vaughan Gething: Well, the regional economic frameworks actually set out how partners are going to work together and the priorities for investment in improvement in those regions. And they're not imposed by Welsh Government—far from it. It's joint work that's been undertaken between those economic regions, between the different partnerships that exist together in Wales, and, in each of them, there's been a...
Vaughan Gething: Well, I just don't think the Cardiff capital region are promoting a low-wage economy in what they're saying. I haven't read the exact text in the brochure, so I'm not going to say that I absolutely endorse or condemn what's there. I know from my conversations with the varied leadership of the region that they are not looking to promote this part of Wales as an area of cheap labour. They...
Vaughan Gething: Well, look, when you actually think about what you've just read out, it doesn't simply say, 'We are marketing the capital region as a low-wage economy.' It's also about the aspirations. When you look at the wider economic framework, actually, they're very clear in the wider economic framework they want to see investment choices made that help to grow businesses and grow wages. And you also...
Vaughan Gething: Thank you for the question. We continue to support the region through our regional economic framework and our place-based approach to economic development. The Welsh Government is a founder member of the Mersey Dee Alliance, as the Member will know, and this is a partnership of organisations working to support the cross-border functional economic area between the north-east of Wales, west...
