Delyth Jewell: Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd. I'm proud to open today's debate on this motion. It's a matter of double importance to me, partly because I'm spokesperson for international affairs, but also because Imam Sis, who has inspired us to table today's debate, lives in Newport, and that falls within my region. I anticipate that Members on other sides of this Chamber will have differing views about what's...
Delyth Jewell: Will you take an intervention?
Delyth Jewell: Thank you to everyone who's taken part in this debate. Members have spoken very movingly in favour of the motion. I agree with Bethan that it’s only right that this Chamber should express our voice on international issues, particularly when they concern a Welsh citizen. Mick Antoniw spoke of the personal affinity that he feels with the Kurds, and I thank him for his very moving words. And...
Delyth Jewell: You didn't take an intervention from me, Darren. I'm not going to take one from you. Llywydd, I wish to end the debate by explaining that Imam and the others on this strike are motivated in their actions by their desire to give Mr Öcalan a voice that has been denied him. To do that, they are willing to sacrifice their lives—not that they want to. A few weeks ago, I visited Imam in the...
Delyth Jewell: Minister, now that the available options are narrowing, I would appreciate clarity about how far the Welsh Government would be willing to go in order to avoid a 'no deal' scenario. There will be a series of indicative votes in Westminster this week, and Plaid Cymru MPs will be prioritising holding a people's vote as the only sustainable way of solving the crisis. But our MPs have also signed...
Delyth Jewell: 6. Will the First Minister provide an update on Welsh Government efforts to tackle climate change? OAQ53743
Delyth Jewell: I thank him for his answer. First Minister, your party has now declared a state of climate emergency. If the Welsh Government declare this officially it will be first Government in the world to do so. Can I ask: does declaring a climate change emergency mean that the Government won't be able to go ahead with its plans for the M4 relief road, and, if it doesn't, what exactly is the point of...
Delyth Jewell: On 20 March, this Assembly instructed the Welsh Government to write to the European committee for the prevention of torture to raise the concerns of Imam Sis and the other Kurdish hunger strikers on the international stage. Imam, who lives in Newport, is now on his one-hundred-and-seventh day of hunger strike. The situation is now beyond serious. It's profoundly immediate. It's urgent. I note...
Delyth Jewell: I'd like to thank the Minister for his statement today. I welcome the fact that you've written to David Lidington to try to secure a statutory role for the devolved Governments in the future negotiations, but I do find it remarkable that confirmation of this only comes now, four days after we were meant to leave the EU. The Government should have issued this as a demand during negotiations...
Delyth Jewell: 1. What financial resources have been allocated to date by the Welsh Government in preparation for the event of a 'no deal' Brexit? OAQ53726
Delyth Jewell: I thank the Minister for her answer. Of course, the resources that have been spent on 'no deal' planning could have been spent on the Welsh national health service and our schools, which are crying out for investment, had the Westminster Government negotiated a sensible deal, along the lines set out in the joint Plaid Cymru/Welsh Government White Paper, 'Securing Wales' Future', published in...
Delyth Jewell: Thank you for your statement, Minister. I'll begin with matters that we agree on. I'd like to support your words of thanks to Welsh Government and public sector staff who have been working so diligently to prepare Wales for the catastrophic possibility of a 'no deal' Brexit. Their hard work is appreciated. I agree with you as well that it is scandalous that resources are being squandered on...
Delyth Jewell: First of all, I would like to welcome the Government's announcement on its new partnership with NBCUniversal, and its decision to extend PYST. These two things are good news, but, unfortunately, these are the only new announcements in the statement that contain any sort of detail. Everything else in the statement is either ambiguous or is stating what's already happening within the creative...
Delyth Jewell: I welcome the recommendations of this report in its entirety. I hadn’t yet joined the committee when the inquiry was being conducted, but I would like to praise this piece of work and the skilful leadership provided by the Chair, David Rees. In the report, we see comprehensive and detailed recommendations as to which steps could be taken to increase the role of Wales at an international...
Delyth Jewell: It isn't often that we feel the weight of history on our shoulders, or rather the weight of the future. I welcome the Welsh Government's declaration of a climate emergency, but as the point has been made by Members across the Chamber, it must be backed up with action. The Oxford English Dictionary defines an emergency as 'a serious situation requiring immediate action'. It is defined by the...
Delyth Jewell: To return to the point that I was making in terms of what this Government is doing: in order to actually declare a climate emergency, it has to be backed up with action. We are living in times of dark days. This is true close to home where over half of Welsh wildlife is in decline and one in 14 species are under threat of extinction. We see the impact of climate change in coastal erosion in...
Delyth Jewell: I wanted to thank the Welsh Government, and the Minister for International Affairs and Welsh Language in particular, for writing a letter at my request last week to Jeremy Hunt, asking him to intervene in the case of my constituent, Imam Sis. This was a truly welcome intervention and I am sincerely grateful for it. Members might be aware that Imam Sis is now critically ill. He's been on...
Delyth Jewell: Diolch, Llywydd. Does the Minister agree that the funding cuts imposed by Westminster since 2010 have caused untold misery to individuals and communities across Wales?
Delyth Jewell: The Minister has stated his view about the damage caused to society by spending cuts, and I agree with the substance of his answer, so let's consider the issue of public spending in the context of Brexit. The UK Government impact analysis released last year projected that UK growth would suffer a hit of between 2 and 8 per cent were Brexit to go ahead, depending on the kind of economic deal...
Delyth Jewell: Minister, the sort of deal that Labour is advocating would mean leaving the European single market and customs union, and this would cause untold damage to the UK economy, leading to further reductions in the Welsh Government's budgets, and it would damage the Welsh economy directly, leading to the closure of businesses and the loss of jobs. And it's not just Plaid Cymru saying this; Welsh...
