Carwyn Jones: I’d argue that the shambles was created in the mid-90s—we can argue much of the afternoon about that—with the 22 authorities that were created and, indeed, their boundaries. Why would somebody take some of our poorest authorities and make them as small as possible? We know that these are issues, and we know that the system is not sustainable. I’m sure we can argue that, where we have...
Carwyn Jones: Well, our target is 20,000. Some of that will be met, as I said, through Help to Buy. There will be different models that will be appropriate for different people—I think that’s true—and we need to be innovative in terms of seeing whether there are ways in which we can acquire existing houses—not compulsory, of course—in terms of making them available to the local market. These are...
Carwyn Jones: Our vision of a million Welsh speakers by 2050 demonstrates our ambition concerning the language. Promoting and normalising are essential components of our draft strategy, which is currently out to consultation.
Carwyn Jones: Bear in mind, of course, that the strategy is actually out to consultation at the moment, and that contains our proposals in terms of the way forward. One area, of course, which is hugely important, is to make sure that the local education authorities have proper Welsh in education strategic plans, and we have made it absolutely clear to them that we will reject any plan they produce—any of...
Carwyn Jones: There are a number of things. First, of course, this is part of the strategy in terms of looking at ways and means of supporting and promoting the language in the digital sphere. It’s also very important to change the behaviours of young people. We have been funding certain Urdd projects over the past few years so that they can develop apps and so on to ensure that children and young people...
Carwyn Jones: [Inaudible]—have been the Welsh-medium education strategies that we expect local authorities to produce, some of them are more advanced than others, but it is hugely important that a proper pathway is identified by local authorities to ensure that access to Welsh as a language to be learnt or, indeed, to be taught through is as available in Wales as possible.
Carwyn Jones: Our tourism strategy, ‘Strategy for Tourism 2013—2020: Partnership for Growth’, sets out our priorities for developing and promoting Wales’s tourism offer both at home and overseas.
Carwyn Jones: The Visit Wales website does list a wide range of events being held throughout Wales, including many in the Valleys, and the annual Nos Galan road race in Mountain Ash is listed in Visit Wales’s main annual tourism brochure, ‘This is Wales 2016’. She asked, of course, as well about accessibility. The Visit Wales website does include a filter for the provision of disabled visitors to...
Carwyn Jones: I don’t know what he did when he was deputy leader of Cardiff, because, of course, the council does have a responsibility, not for the railway station, I accept, but certainly for Central Square, now being developed, of course, by a Labour-led council in Cardiff. So, the new bus station is being built and the city has a proper gateway. He raises an important point about central railway...
Carwyn Jones: He makes a strong case for the area that he represents, which I appreciate. We do look, of course, to promote all areas of Wales, including areas that traditionally have not been seen as areas that have traditionally attracted tourists. I can say that expenditure by staying visitors in Wales in 2015 was over £2.3 billion, well above the target that we set in place. We know that tourism is a...
Carwyn Jones: Yes, of course. In response to the point I made earlier on, we want to encourage tourism to all parts of Wales, not just the areas that have traditionally been the areas that have attracted most tourists. And we’ll continue to look to provide investment to improve those facilities for visitors in the years to come.
Carwyn Jones: Of course, working with local authorities, we’re able to investigate, for example, the provision of more brown signs. We see those going up across Wales. It is right to say that we are working on making sure that we get more capture of the visitors that are travelling along the A55 to Ireland, many of whom have said to me in the past, ‘Well, we’ve travelled to Ireland that way but not...
Carwyn Jones: Yes.
Carwyn Jones: This will be examined, of course, when the budget is produced, and, as part of the promises we made to the people of Wales back in May, we intend to continue the situation where health inequalities close. What we’ve seen, of course, with the bedroom tax and with cuts in welfare benefits is that inequality has risen in Wales and we will do what we can to combat that. I’m grateful to him...
Carwyn Jones: Well, he mentions the budgetary issues. Again, they will be part of the budget when it’s published for all Members to see. We have our target of 20,000. The Minister will be explaining to the Assembly how that target will be achieved. We have achieved those targets in the past. We stand on our record. He talks of a trilogy. The second part of the trilogy, of course, was the defeat and...
Carwyn Jones: Well, first of all, we have been investing, as we will in Blaenau Ffestiniog, in brand-new health centres across the whole of Wales. Simply keeping old buildings going for the sake of it is not how we see the future of the health service. It’s hugely important that Blaenau and other communities have access to the most up-to-date, modern facilities possible, and there are examples of that...
Carwyn Jones: He seems to be making a case for the establishment of a district general hospital in the area if he says that travel is a problem. Yes, it is. We know that travel in some parts of Wales means that people have to travel further than normal, but that’s because they get a better service than a district general hospital. What we have, of course, is Ysbyty Alltwen, which is about, I think, 7...
Carwyn Jones: It’s absolutely essential that the area gets better treatment; that’s why we’re investing in health facilities. He needs to go and talk to people, for example, on Deeside, where a brand-new health facility was opened there, or people, indeed, in Port Talbot, in Baglan, with the Neath Port Talbot Hospital—the brand-new health centre there—or Builth Wells, with the brand-new health...
Carwyn Jones: With child and adolescent mental health service, we’ve invested heavily—£6.6 million into the service. Demand outstripped supply, that much is true, which is why, of course, we’ve matched that with the extra investment that has been put in. It means, of course, that the numbers waiting and the times that youngsters are waiting have gone down.
Carwyn Jones: Well, first of all, mindfulness was mentioned in the Welsh Labour manifesto as something that could be looked at. When we talk about the health of a child up to seven years old, that must include all types of health, including mental health as well. That is something that will be taken into consideration when developing the programme. The second point is this: she’s right, we do see...
