Rhys ab Owen: Or let me put it in a different way. There are over twice as many Tory MPs without confidence in the Prime Minister than there are of Senedd Members sitting here. Lord Thomas of Cwmgiedd never refers to the devolution settlement in Wales because its been anything but settled. We've had at least four different versions. There are only two constants in the history of Welsh devolution. One is...
Rhys ab Owen: It's worth reminding my friends on the benches opposite of some historical facts. The Conservatives were wiped off the electoral map in Wales in 1997—the first time since the Liberal Party landslide in 1906. They were good days, weren't they, Jane Dodds? The Tories did not stage a comeback at Westminster until eight years later in 2005, and a great help for that comeback were the Tory...
Rhys ab Owen: Andrew R.T. Davies recently said in the Conservative Party conference that they need to put on the red jersey in Wales. Well, Andrew, backing a stronger Senedd would be a good start for that.
Rhys ab Owen: Before long we will lose 20 per cent of our representatives in Westminster. Back in 2016, one of my predecessors, the Conservative David Melding, launched a pamphlet on the opportunity to create more Assembly Members by cutting the number of Welsh MPs in Westminster.
Rhys ab Owen: The report argued that, because of a cut in the number of Westminster Members, we could increase our numbers here without a negative effect on the public purse. Professor Russell Deacon went forward and he said, as one of the authors of the report, that there's a potential Brexit bonus in this—that truly elusive creature that you lot haven't been able to find yet—a Brexit bonus that the...
Rhys ab Owen: If we want to discuss in more detail the cost of politicians, maybe the Conservatives can have a word with their friend the Prime Minister—well, the Prime Minister for the time being—Boris Johnson. As we heard, more than 80 appointments to the House of Lords, and some of those against the advice of the appointments commission—that is what we have now in Westminster. We all know that the...
Rhys ab Owen: This is a case of levelling up the Senedd so that it fits the modern, confident, self-governing Wales of today. The number 96 will be futureproof, as Huw Irranca-Davies alluded to. Whilst Andrew R.T. Davies performedly announces that Welsh Conservatives will always—will always—oppose devolution of justice, we know that his bosses in London will be happy to overrule him at any point....
Rhys ab Owen: What is being proposed today is not perfect, but the nature of devolution in Wales since 1997 has not been perfect. In 1997, some in the Liberal Democrats, and some in my own party, argued that what was being proposed by Labour wasn't good enough and that we shouldn't support that, while others said, 'Well, we will take hold of this, this imperfect proposal, in order to try and refine it and...
Rhys ab Owen: With hindsight, the latter group were correct—thankfully, Dafydd Wigley and Richard Livsey put their full force behind the most meagre of proposals, but one that, within a few years, had built this Parliament. If our nation had voted against devolution for a second time, we would have spent the last two decades as a voiceless periphery, unable to address the pandemic in a...
Rhys ab Owen: Will the Minister provide an update on her discussions with the Ministry of Justice on the residential women’s centre in Swansea?
Rhys ab Owen: Two statements, please, Trefnydd. As the leader of the opposition reminded us earlier, our minds are turning towards Grenfell Tower today, five years or half a decade after that tragic incident. I heard the reasoning of the First Minister on why the statement was pulled, but the residents that I've spoken to were actually offended by the fact that it was pulled on this day, and they saw it as...
Rhys ab Owen: 8. When will the new national programme board for palliative and end-of-life care begin work on an implementation plan? OQ58171
Rhys ab Owen: Thank you very much, Minister; I'm very pleased to hear that the work is starting so soon. Can you confirm to me, Minister, that there will be sufficient capacity within the board to ensure that the action plan happens quickly?
Rhys ab Owen: 2. What steps is the Welsh Government taking to ensure that the necessary infrastructure is in place to meet housing development needs in Cardiff? OQ58213
Rhys ab Owen: Thank you very much, First Minister. I was very pleased to read the report on the creation of a metro between Llantrisant and Cardiff, and I agree entirely with you, and with the Counsel General, about the importance of that scheme. The difficulty of course is that it's going to take 10 years to build, and, as you know, thousands of people have moved to new homes in the north of the city,...
Rhys ab Owen: Prif Weinidog, I also commend the work of Joyce Watson—the tireless work she's done in this field since her election in 2007. And I'm sure she'll be pleased that I've also read the report, so that's two of us, Prif Weinidog, who have read it, and I'm sure many others have also. We have made some very important steps with regard to victim care, with the establishment of the victims...
Rhys ab Owen: Diolch yn fawr, Dirprwy Lywydd. Diolch yn fawr, Weinidog. I am grateful for the update. And I'm sure any support for leaseholders is greatly welcomed. I also appreciate the need to get this right. It was cutting corners, it was greed with malpractice that led to this tragic situation in the first place, and it was successive Westminster Governments of all political colours that ignored...
Rhys ab Owen: 1. What steps is the Welsh Government taking to protect the Welsh devolution settlement following the announcement by the UK Government to remove the Trade Union (Wales) Act 2017? TQ645
Rhys ab Owen: That's exactly right, isn't it, Trefnydd? Because, since the beginning of democratic devolution, by election or referenda, the people of Wales have voted time and time again to enhance the law-making powers of the Senedd. The very principle established through democratic means is being undermined by the Westminster Conservative Government. This very Chamber is being undermined. The Prime...
Rhys ab Owen: Thank you very much, Deputy Presiding Officer. Adam Price is correct. Within the past five years, there were 44 UK Bills within the devolved settlement, as compared to 21 Welsh Bills. And many of those UK Bills have been passed without the consent of this Senedd, and many of them give power to UK Ministers to change the devolved settlement. So, how can we reform the LCM process, in order to...
