Russell George: Thank you, Presiding Officer. Can I first of all thank the Cabinet Secretary for his words at the beginning of his contribution? As a committee, of course, we’re pleased that you’ve accepted our recommendations, but we’re very pleased that you’ve taken this issue seriously, and we’re grateful that you’ve accepted the conclusions of our report. Adam Price—his experience as a...
Russell George: Will the First Minister make a statement on the Welsh Government's support for people with disabilities in mid Wales?
Russell George: Cabinet Secretary, there are still issues that exist for cross-border farmers, owing to the lack of sometimes constructive engagement between the English and Welsh payment agencies. At a meeting of the cross-party group on cross-border issues, which I chaired earlier this year, the chief executives of the Rural Payments Agency and Rural Payments Wales committed to holding joint meetings with...
Russell George: I would agree with you, Minister, that the CSSIW report on children’s services in Powys is incredibly serious. It’s a damning report and makes uncomfortable reading, and highlights a number of historical failings that have meant that children’s safety and well-being have been jeopardised. The report raises a number of very serious concerns about Powys County Council’s children’s...
Russell George: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. I move the motion in the name of Paul Davies, which calls on the Assembly to extend the eligibility for free bus travel entitlements and railcard privileges to all 16 to 24-year-olds in Wales. I think our debate this afternoon is very relevant to follow on from the previous debate. As Members may appreciate, we are unable to support the Welsh...
Russell George: Will the Cabinet Secretary make a statement on the performance of Rent Smart Wales?
Russell George: First Minister, I also attended the event, which Hefin chaired earlier on, and we heard how rural Wales is heavily reliant on the contribution of self-employment to the economy. Hefin’s pointed out that 23 per cent of those in Powys are self-employed, and that compares to the Welsh average of 13 per cent. Now, the FSB Wales report has found that those who are self-employed tend to be older,...
Russell George: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. I’d like to thank those Members who took part in this debate this afternoon. In opening, my colleague Nick Ramsay comprehensively outlined why this ill-conceived proposal would be inappropriate for Wales, and, of course, the tourism industry would be significantly affected, as we’ve heard in contributions today from Members on this side of the Chamber....
Russell George: Well let’s have a look—. [Laughter.] Let’s have a look at what the First Minister says. So, the First Minister, talking about tourism tax said—. This is what the First Minister said, on 10 October: We think that’s a way of sharing the burden. We think that’s a good way of ensuring more money is available for tourism.’ And responding to Darren Millar, he says: I would have...
Russell George: If she wants to—go on, then. Hurry up.
Russell George: No, I can’t see that; we’re having this debate this afternoon, Joyce Watson. Caroline Jones also pointed out the chair of the British Hospitality Association, who also happens to be the managing director of the Lake Vyrnwy Hotel and Spa, which is based in my own constituency, expressed his views that a tourism tax will hand an unfair advantage to our competitors in England, and this has,...
Russell George: Deputy Presiding Officer, I’m going to agree with Steffan Lewis this afternoon. Steffan Lewis has said that a tourism tax would be an additional burden and not something that Plaid Cymru can support at this time. So, I agree with Steffan Lewis’s comments. Now, the Cabinet Secretary has commented this afternoon on our debate. What I would say is that one thing I am pleased the Cabinet...
Russell George: [Continues.]—that this will be taken off the table for the rest of this Assembly term.
Russell George: Thank you, Presiding Officer. I’ve tried my best over the last minute to contribute to this debate, but I’ve been shouted down, but thank you, Presiding Officer.
Russell George: When the Cabinet Secretary announces in the new year, I hope that this proposal will be dropped. What I would call on him to do is to ask him to ensure that this proposal is dropped for the rest of this Assembly term, because that’s the assurance that is needed by the tourism sector and businesses across Wales. Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer.
Russell George: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. We all know about the crisis that is facing general practitioner recruitment, especially in rural areas. Just last week, we had reports in the media that not a single person had applied for a job vacancy to work as a GP in a Pembrokeshire surgery in the last nine months. There are plenty of further examples from my own constituency of posts being...
Russell George: First Minister, since the creation of the Ebbw Vale enterprise zone, £94.6 million has been spent to create, safeguard or assist just 390 jobs. Those are figures published by the Welsh Government. So, that's a cost of around £0.25 million per job. Given that the key plank of enterprise zones is job creation, these figures indicate to me that there's a huge level of investment that has not...
Russell George: Can I welcome the Minister to his new post? It's my understanding that the Welsh Government has been working very closely with Powys County Council following, of course, the damning report from Care and Social Services Inspectorate Wales into the ways in which children's services are being delivered in Powys. Delivering services across a large sparsely populated area is extremely...
Russell George: First Minister, unemployment in mid Wales is very low, but gross value added per head lags behind cities like Cardiff and Swansea, and there is a significant gap when it comes to the average salaries of those in rural mid Wales. Now, a potential growth deal for mid Wales is one of the ways to ensure that we foster the right skills and training for businesses to thrive. As part of a potential...
Russell George: First Minister, I just heard your previous response. Do you agree with me that we ought to be looking at appointing trade envoys to boost exports to countries outside of the EU? That will, of course, raise Wales's commercial presence and international profile.
