Russell George: Can I thank you for your answer, Cabinet Secretary? I am being approached by an increasingly larger number of businesses that want to expand their businesses but can't, and this is because there are no suitable accommodation or commercial sites available for them to expand their operations. Now, there is a shortage, I think, of commercial units, particularly in the Welshpool and Newtown area,...
Russell George: First Minister, one of the frustrations for disabled passengers is that many trains only have a single wheelchair space, which is too often taken up by pushchairs or luggage. Now, I've been informed that, in Australia, a whole carriage is dedicated to those passengers with reduced mobility, where there are additional spaces for wheelchair users. Can you outline a bit more detail on how the...
Russell George: Can I also thank the Cabinet Secretary for his detailed statement this afternoon? I can agree with much of what the Cabinet Secretary has outlined. It's interesting that he mentioned that journey times in 1977 were actually faster between London and Cardiff than they are today. With regard to your list of overarching needs, I was pleased to note that you've made reference to access to...
Russell George: Diolch, Deputy Presiding Officer. I move the motion. Over the last 15 months or so, the Economy, Infrastructure and Skills Committee has been somewhat obsessed with apprenticeships. In addition to the report we're debating today, we've also reported on the introduction of the UK Government's apprenticeship levy, and just last month we scrutinised the Minister again, assessing the impact of...
Russell George: Yes.
Russell George: Thank you, Suzy. I don't think we had that precise evidence in the inquiry, but I think what you said is in line with the committee's thinking as well, and I suppose very much it feeds into our recommendations 6 and 7, which, I was about to go on to say, the Government has accepted, actually, in principle, pending the completion of ongoing consultation. I think I'm accepting of that; I accept...
Russell George: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. Dawn Bowden, can I thank you for your contribution in regard to the issue you raised about raising awareness—employee awareness? I think that's quite correct. You raised some issues that we didn't look at in our inquiry but I think are completely relevant to today's debate. I certainly think that there are some areas that you raised in your contribution...
Russell George: Mark Isherwood used his contribution to highlight, in large part, evidence that we've received from Remploy in regard to apprentices and in regard to disabled people. This is an area where we need to see some real progress being made; the Minister's acknowledged that and accepted that recommendation in that regard as well. Joyce Watson, Rhianon Passmore and Siân Gwenllian also raised...
Russell George: Will the Cabinet Secretary make a statement on the support available to enable elected councillors to undertake their roles effectively?
Russell George: First Minister, a constituent, Mr Robert Jones, has recently informed me that he can no longer collect his prescription from the pharmacy within the building of his GP practice because of dispensing rules that have changed as a result of being brought in following the National Health Service (Pharmaceutical Services) (Wales) Regulations 2013, in spite of the fact that he has been registered...
Russell George: Leader of the house, can I thank you for your statement this afternoon? I have a number of questions, and I hope you'll be able to answer them specifically. If not, I may have an opportunity to ask you again tomorrow during questions. You seem to suggest that Openreach have been more than successful in delivering on the terms of the original Superfast Cymru contract, but five months after...
Russell George: Diolch, Presiding Officer. Leader of the house, 18 months ago, you announced the intention to publish the mobile action plan. Can I ask, since that date, what concrete measures you have implemented to improve mobile coverage in Wales? And when was the last time you directly met with mobile operators?
Russell George: You did, and I did ask in my question what concrete measures you have implemented to improve mobile coverage in Wales. I didn't hear anything to tell me what actual measures you've undertaken. I would suggest that perhaps you do meet with the operators together, because they would be able to tell you what their barriers are. They tell me what the barriers are, and I think they need to...
Russell George: Well, you keep saying that these issues aren't devolved. The two specific issues that I asked you about are absolutely devolved. I asked you about offering non-domestic rate relief for new masts, which you didn't address. I also asked you about changes to the planning regime. You talk about how this isn't in your portfolio, but you should be answering—you've already discussed this with the...
Russell George: Diolch, Deputy Presiding Officer. I think my genuine fear is that businesses up and down the country, if they're listening to this, will be scratching their heads thinking, 'What's all this about?', and that's part of the issue for me. I was waiting for something tangible in your statement this afternoon, Cabinet Secretary. When you got halfway through and started talking about the economic...
Russell George: 3. What measures has the Welsh Government taken to improve educational standards in Montgomeryshire? OAQ52212
Russell George: Cabinet Secretary, the governing body of Ysgol Bro Hyddgen in Machynlleth is proposing not to have an English language stream from September for the new intake of pupils into reception year. Every child in that year will be taught through the medium of Welsh. I've received a large number of concerns from parents in this regard, and there was a public meeting in Machynlleth on this matter on...
Russell George: Thank you, Cabinet Secretary, for that clarification. Under the new arrangements, I think you've confirmed that there won't be any NHS staff moving to the private sector, but if there's any change at all with regard to staff moving from any NHS body to another third party, can you confirm that staff pension rights wouldn't be affected in that regard? Also, there are some concerns about a...
Russell George: 1. Will the Cabinet Secretary make a statement on the role of Transport for Wales in the new rail franchise which has been announced today? 178
Russell George: Thank you, Cabinet Secretary. The Public Accounts Committee yesterday published a report on the Circuit of Wales project—and there is a link here, Deputy Presiding Officer—which deliberately focused on two very specific areas of scrutiny. The first was the Welsh Government's managerial approach to ensuring that the Circuit of Wales project delivered value for money, and secondly, the...
