Helen Mary Jones: 1. What legal advice has the Counsel General provided to the Welsh Government regarding the legal impact of the UN’s Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women? OAQ55206
Helen Mary Jones: I'm grateful to the Counsel General for his response. Does the Counsel General agree with me that we may be facing a situation, given the nature of the Government at the other end of the M4 and the pressure there to deregulate, and what many of us would be concerned about in terms of a potential lack of commitment to equality, where the current equality legislation and the Equality Act...
Helen Mary Jones: 3. What legal representations has the Counsel General made on behalf of the Welsh Government in support of the Backto60 appeal about the alleged mishandling of raising the state pension age for women born in the 1950s? OAQ55205
Helen Mary Jones: I'm grateful to the Counsel General for his response. Given that we now have a new Government at the other end of the M4, and that that Government talks a lot about levelling up and about fairness, would the Counsel General consider, perhaps with the Deputy Minister with responsibility for equalities, making further representations to the appropriate Minister at Westminster and perhaps...
Helen Mary Jones: 2. What action is the Commission taking to raise awareness amongst those newly eligible to vote of their right to do so in the May 2021 Senedd elections? OAQ55211
Helen Mary Jones: I'm very grateful to the Llywydd for her answer, and it's extremely encouraging. I wonder if she can say a little bit more about how young people themselves are being involved in the discussion about how best we can communicate these messages to them? And, on a slightly different but related matter, can she tell us what partnerships are being developed to enable those foreign national...
Helen Mary Jones: I'm very grateful to David Rees for placing this question, and to the Minister for his response. I fully appreciate that the Minister doesn't want to get drawn into detailed discussions about what turns out to be a leaked memo, but I would associate myself with what he and David Rees have said about how this looks as if it is travel in the right direction and that this is encouraging. I'd...
Helen Mary Jones: Diolch yn fawr, Dirprwy Lywydd. This proposal is intended as a constructive contribution to the debate as to what will happen to equality policy here in Wales after Brexit. On these benches, we believe that equality law should be devolved in all its aspects, but we're realistic enough to understand that, given the current complexion of the Government at the other end of the M4, we're unlikely...
Helen Mary Jones: I'm very grateful to you, Dirprwy Lywydd. I feel that the Senedd may be rather tired of me by the end of today, because this isn't my last planned contribution—I thank Dr Dai Lloyd for his kind words. I'm very grateful to the Minister for the tone of her response. I fully endorse a great deal of what she said. She is right, of course, to say that there are some employers who are embracing...
Helen Mary Jones: I'm very grateful to you and to all the Members who have taken part in this debate. I won't have time to fully respond to everybody's points, but I do want to respond to some of them. I would say to Mick Antoniw and to Vikki Howells that I completely accept that their commitment to this cause is genuine, but if they want more time to debate it, perhaps they should ask their Government for...
Helen Mary Jones: No, we absolutely did and my point, David, was that it's up to us to decide that and if your colleagues want to seek further time, they've got other opportunities to do that, but it's up to us how we use that time. So I'm not taking any lessons on it. But that's not the main substantive point. I need to make a correction to my colleague Leanne Wood, because she said that I wrote the...
Helen Mary Jones: I will happily—
Helen Mary Jones: I do apologise, Mick Antoniw; I would have taken the intervention if I could. You are accountable, you are responsible. If you want to change that, change the legislation, but don't keep hiding behind an independence of the health boards that simply doesn't exist.
Helen Mary Jones: Thank you very much for taking the intervention. We, in the committee that I’m chairing instead of Bethan, are intending to make comments on the subject before us today, but we will certainly consider the points that you’re making about looking at the subject in its entirety, if that’s appropriate, because, as you said, this problem is not going to go away, even if we are successful in...
Helen Mary Jones: I'm very grateful to the Minister for his statement today and for his answers to Russell George. We are, as he said, facing an absolutely unprecedented situation, and I was very pleased to hear him and the First Minister concur with the views on these benches and, I think, across the Chamber that this situation needs a massive response across the whole of the UK. We quite literally, most of...
Helen Mary Jones: 6. What assessment has been made of the impact of coronavirus on cultural events, particularly Welsh language events such as Eisteddfod yr Urdd? OAQ55272
Helen Mary Jones: I'm grateful to the Minister for her reply, and obviously it's early days yet. But I'd be grateful if she can provide some further reassurance that she fully understands the financial impact on the Urdd—hopefully not, but possibly looking forward to the National Eisteddfod in the summer too—and we know that the margins on which these organisations operate are pretty slim anyway, and to...
Helen Mary Jones: I thank the Minister for his response to Alun Davies's question. I think it is undoubtedly true that because of the structure of our economy we will need a higher level of support for business, potentially, and I'm encouraged by what the Minister says that he's getting some positive response from the UK Government to acknowledge that. I'm sure that we can have every faith in the finance...
Helen Mary Jones: I'd like to thank the Minister very much for his statement and to say how pleased I'm sure we all are to see him back at the front line. I know he was working very hard when he was self-isolating, but it's very good to see him here. It must have been a very worrying time for him and his family and I'm very glad to see him here with us today. I'd like to associate myself with the remarks that...
Helen Mary Jones: If I can briefly return to testing. I heard what the First Minister said about the interpretation, the UK or Wales interpretation of World Health Organization advice, but it would help me if I could understand a little more about how that advice differs for Wales and the UK. Because it's a headline, isn't it? The public hear the World Health Organization saying, 'Test, test, test'; we are...
