David Rowlands: Diolch, Lywydd. Can I rather belatedly congratulate the Cabinet Secretary on his appointment to what is a very comprehensive portfolio? I’m sure he’ll prove as competent in handling it as he has in his previous roles. I look forward to working in a constructive manner with him as UKIP’s member on the Economy, Infrastructure and Skills Committee. The matter that gives rise to my...
David Rowlands: Fine. As you haven’t been able to give me an answer on that, can I say that it slightly alters what I’m going to say now? But there is a suggested alternative to the difficulty of constructing a turn-back facility at Newport, which appears to be a major stumbling block, which under the present circumstances will require extensive structural changes. The alternative compromise is that the...
David Rowlands: I’m sorry, Presiding Officer; I only have a secondary question.
David Rowlands: I do apologise for that.
David Rowlands: I want to address just a small part of this project, Cabinet Secretary, and notwithstanding the situation that you’ve outlined, and given that you’ve indicated that the door is always open, I therefore still find it very disappointing that Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council are not offering their support to this prestigious project, especially as this is very much in their catchment...
David Rowlands: Whilst my party broadly welcomes the metro project, closer inspection makes it difficult to envisage any real advantage it brings to the conurbations of the eastern Valleys. Could the First Minister comment where, if any, improvements are envisaged to enhance connectivity for this area?
David Rowlands: Will the First Minister provide an update on what is being done to address the working conditions of migrant workers involved in car valeting facilities?
David Rowlands: Sorry, no.
David Rowlands: Well, it amazes me—the negativity that so often comes from the other side of this house. We’ve heard many things lauded in this Assembly with regard to the European Union. One of the AMs this morning alluded to the protection for workers within the European Union, and the legislation of the European Union that gave protection to those. You did in fact allude to that. Well, I would like to...
David Rowlands: Yes.
David Rowlands: Anecdote? So, the anecdote is that thousands of people can work in this country under appalling working conditions, and you call it an anecdote.
David Rowlands: That doesn’t matter? That has no influence on how we keep this country clean? Well, it does matter. I want to take up another point, anyway, with the other AM who talked about a farmer getting £68,000 under the CAP payments. Well, there are farmers in England who get £1 million a year under the CAP payments for not growing products, and many of our farmers in Wales are—in fact, most of...
David Rowlands: Yes, of course.
David Rowlands: I do. I honestly believe that the benefits they’ll get from coming out of the European Union, instead of subsidising inefficient French, German, Italian and Greek farmers, can be used to subsidise our farmers to a far greater degree. But I do agree with this: that we all have to work, cross-party, in this Assembly to make sure that the UK Government does deliver the bonus that we have from...
David Rowlands: I did not say that migrants shouldn’t be coming here to wash our cars. What I said was we are giving migrant workers no protection as to how they’re being exploited. The reason for that is that there is a huge over-supply of cheap labour in the market, and if anybody knows anything about economics, they know that an over-supply of a product means that the price of the product goes down....
David Rowlands: Following on from this discussion of bus services in a specific area, I understand that there’s been a preliminary assessment of the reintroduction of a railway line from Carmarthen to Aberystwyth. Can the First Minister inform us as to any future plans to institute a full feasibility study and, if so, when?
David Rowlands: Well, yet again we see Plaid Cymru wanting to ignore the wishes of the Welsh electorate. Is this because Plaid Cymru does not believe the proletariat has the intelligence to make an informed decision? One of the key reasons we heard time after time on the doorstep was ‘No free movement of peoples.’ When will Plaid Cymru listen to the people?
David Rowlands: Thank you. [Interruption.] By all means, but that does not cover the fact that you are ignoring the will of the Welsh people, which was given to you in a democratic vote.
David Rowlands: Yes.
David Rowlands: At the risk of offending certain AMs with regard to anecdotal evidence—I see that Lee Waters has just left the Chamber—I would like to say that I may indeed be the only AM present who actually experienced both a secondary modern and a grammar school education, in that I first attended—[Interruption.] I’ll give a pass to my colleague there, who may also have done that. I first attended...
