Mick Antoniw: Thank you for the answer, and I very much welcome the work that has been done on something that has not been, perhaps, recognised as being as important as it is. I know there have been previous questions, I think from Llyr Gruffydd and others, around this particular subject. I've had a number of representations to me, because although sleep apnoea and narcolepsy are particularly recognised,...
Mick Antoniw: Isn't part of the problem that you made very specific promises in your manifesto, they were put out publicly with the specific view of getting people to vote for you, and to win certain constituencies, and so on? Now, I have no problem with that, because that's part of politics. But, doesn't it actually destroy the whole purpose of a manifesto, the credibility of our political system? I mean,...
Mick Antoniw: I'm grateful for the opportunity today to introduce this Member's legislative proposal to abolish leasehold tenure for new residential houses. We have, of course, debated this issue on several occasions. On the last occasion, this Chamber held a very detailed, informed and passionate individual Members' debate on the problems arising from the renewed growth of leasehold housing and the...
Mick Antoniw: How would I address the issue of—?
Mick Antoniw: I think any property that involves a shared ownership of different parties of the freehold will be excluded. This solely relates to single-ownership new housing. We all know that buying a property is the most significant financial decision most people will make, so it is vital that prospective purchasers understand the full implications and consequences of buying a leasehold property. So,...
Mick Antoniw: Can I firstly thank all those who spoke in the debate and the inevitable list that we all have of horror stories of the existing system? Can I also very much thank the Cabinet Secretary for the commitment he's made, which I think has moved further on to at least beginning to look at the reality of a possible piece of legislation? Much of what the Cabinet Secretary said I very much agree with,...
Mick Antoniw: Will you take an intervention?
Mick Antoniw: Do you not accept, though, that with the agricultural produce and with the fish produce that we have within Wales, if we don't have absolutely unrestricted access to the European market where most of it goes, most of it will become adulterated, that market will actually be lost and the only people who will benefit will probably be the Welsh population who'll be forced to eat lobster every week?
Mick Antoniw: Thank you for taking the intervention, but isn't the point this: that, unless we have unfettered access to the European market, where the majority of our produce goes, it will actually kill off our fishing industry and our shellfish industry, unless we have that? So, isn't the logic of what you're arguing that we must have unfettered access?
Mick Antoniw: 3. Will the Cabinet Secretary make a statement on the application of the minimum wage in Wales? OAQ52459
Mick Antoniw: Thank you for that answer, Cabinet Secretary. It's perhaps timely to welcome the appointment of Linda Dickens as the chair of the Welsh Government's fair work commission, because when it comes to the issue of the minimum wage and workers' rights generally, we can see that the ball game is beginning to change at UK Government level, where the hard line Brexiteers are now beginning to talk...
Mick Antoniw: The Carillion debacle is the most recent example of the failure of market forces and of the policy of privatisation that fuelled the unbridled growth of companies like Carillion. The reports of the National Audit Office and the House of Commons joint select committee should be seen as more than an analysis of the failure of one company, but an exposé of the economic and political corruption...
Mick Antoniw: First Minister, I've just three relatively succinct points. In respect of 16 to 17-year-olds voting, I wonder if you could perhaps elaborate on your views as to how that legislation might be framed, particularly since it has a significant impact on how the education curriculum operates, and the issues that exist, for example, around schools within their curriculum talking about political...
Mick Antoniw: Cabinet Secretary, on the basis that UKIP have raised the issue of Donald Trump, do you agree with President Trump that Boris Johnson would make a good Tory Prime Minister and that he would certainly be better than Theresa May? Do you agree that, if that were to happen—or even if it doesn't happen—any possible trade deal with America is now a potential disaster zone, bearing in mind the...
Mick Antoniw: Leader of the house, you will have seen over the past couple of years the statements from Baroness Hale, the president of the Supreme Court, and you will have seen the statements from senior judiciary and many lawyers, about the way in which the Tories have actually destroyed the legal aid system, consequently disempowering whole communities, and some of the poorest and most vulnerable people...
Mick Antoniw: Cabinet Secretary, you'll have heard Frances O'Grady, general secretary of the Wales TUC, recently. She said: 'I warned the prime minister that if her deal doesn’t protect jobs, rights at work and peace in Northern Ireland, the TUC will throw our weight behind the call for a vote on the terms of Brexit. We’re all trade unionists—when we do a deal, we go back to the members to get...
Mick Antoniw: Minister, I was very interested, actually, in the comments that started off from Adam Price with regard to Coleg Harlech, because Members will remember the actual role that played in the actual training of workers and trade union representatives and so on in exactly these sorts of issues that we're discussing now. Of course, there has been demise of many of these other similar courses that...
Mick Antoniw: Absolutely. That's my point.
Mick Antoniw: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. The Constitutional and Legislative Affairs Committee reported on the Childcare Funding (Wales) Bill on 28 June and it made 12 recommendations. As an aside, we have received yesterday the response to a number of those recommendations from the Minister, for which I'm grateful, and for the positive response to many of them. So, this report is very much on the...
Mick Antoniw: What discussions has the Cabinet Secretary had with the Cabinet Secretary for Local Government and Public Services on the role of healthcare organisations in local authority planning processes?
