Samuel Kurtz: Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd. I thank the Minister for his statement on the net-zero skills strategy. Prior to the statement, I took the time to read through the 'Stronger, fairer, greener Wales: a plan for employability and skills' action plan and the annexe, 'Skills emission sector overview and cross-cutting themes'. I was disappointed to find no mention of Pembrokeshire or Pembrokeshire College,...
Samuel Kurtz: I'm grateful for advance sight of this afternoon's statement and I refer Members to my register of interests. It's vital that we are exceptionally clear about the risks that AMR, antimicrobial resistance, poses to modern society, be that on farm or in a healthcare setting. This risk poses an existential threat to both humans and animals, and so we must ensure that this Government is...
Samuel Kurtz: First Minister, I have many happy memories from working aboard the Stena Europe and the Lynx sailing from Fishguard to Rosslare in the early 2010s when I was still a student. Much of the chatter and the talk below deck and in the galley then was that the consolidation of the two ports in Pembrokeshire was to be forthcoming in that time. Since then, in the last month, we've heard Irish Ferries...
Samuel Kurtz: 7. How is the Welsh Government supporting the local economy in Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire? OQ59222
Samuel Kurtz: Llywydd, earlier this week, I met with the Welsh Wool Alliance and local Pembrokeshire knitwear manufacturer Monkstone to discuss the huge potential that is Wales's wool industry. As it stands, the UK-wide wool industry generates the fourth largest wool clip in the world, with Wales contributing over one third of wool to this figure. Through the support of 6,000 Welsh farmers, we generate...
Samuel Kurtz: 4. How is the Welsh Government supporting the renewable energy industry? OQ59277
Samuel Kurtz: Yesterday, I had the pleasure of attending a round-table with the south Wales industrial cluster as they launched their decarbonisation plan. While at the meeting, I was delighted to be shown a tweet from your Twitter account, First Minister, celebrating consent being given for Blue Gem Wind's Erebus project off the south Pembrokeshire coast. Floating offshore wind, this joint venture between...
Samuel Kurtz: Can I raise a point of order, Llywydd?
Samuel Kurtz: It's not true. There's a BBC tweet saying that's untrue. That's all.
Samuel Kurtz: 3. Will the Minister provide an update on access to public transport in Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire? OQ59268
Samuel Kurtz: Thank you very much for that response, Deputy Minister.
Samuel Kurtz: I'm sure, Deputy Minister, you will be aware of my enthusiasm for the new St Clears railway station in my constituency of Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire. This is a project that the community is incredibly invested in. However, there is concern from Carmarthenshire County Council about shortfalls in potential source funding. I wrote to you, Deputy Minister, on 20 January to raise...
Samuel Kurtz: 8. Will the First Minister provide an update on access to healthcare in Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire? OQ59325
Samuel Kurtz: Prif Weinidog, Welsh NHS waiting lists continue to dominate my inbox. One of my constituents living with osteoporosis and five broken vertebrae has had to wait two years to be seen by a pain specialist. We are still awaiting the final decision on the location of a new hospital in west Wales—a build that won't be completed until the end of this decade at the earliest. Until that time, what...
Samuel Kurtz: Minister, ensuring that RDP spending is effectively allocated and delivered is key to ensuring that it delivers value for money, while supporting the development of rural communities. In the most recent Economy, Trade and Rural Affairs Committee meeting, you stated that you will no longer be setting up a rural development advisory board to advise on the content and delivery of the domestic...
Samuel Kurtz: This isn't a debate, much like Russell George and Sam Rowlands, that I take great pleasure in speaking in, and it’s one that I have wrestled with internally throughout the day. [Interruption.]
Samuel Kurtz: I'm not going to sit down, as the Deputy Minister suggested. I'm not going to sit down because I need to contribute on behalf of my constituents in Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire.
Samuel Kurtz: As colleagues have highlighted, Llywydd, the issue of good, reliable and safe access to healthcare remains one of the defining topics of correspondence in my inbox from constituents of Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire. So, with the immense privilege that it is in representing those people, I felt that I needed to contribute today. I want to focus my contribution on healthcare in west...
Samuel Kurtz: I will most certainly take an intervention.
Samuel Kurtz: I'm grateful to the Member for intervening. I can imagine that the autumn budget released extra, additional funding for both education and the health service, by the Chancellor Jeremy Hunt, last October. But we are here to debate health services here in Wales. We are elected by the people here in Wales to sit in a Welsh Parliament. I recently spoke—[Interruption.] Well, I'm very happy to...
