Dawn Bowden: 8. What steps is the Welsh Government taking to support the economic development of town centres in Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney? OQ56361
Dawn Bowden: Thank you for that answer, Deputy Minister. I was very pleased that, last week, when the Minister Ken Skates announced the reconstruction mission for Wales, this enshrined the principle of town centres first. Now, my particular concern is to ensure a better connected digital future that will sit alongside developments like the new bus station, metro services, road improvements on the Heads of...
Dawn Bowden: 1. What is the Welsh Government's latest assessment of the impact of the EU-UK trade and co-operation agreement on the south Wales Valleys? OQ56362
Dawn Bowden: Thank you for that answer, Minister. So, would you therefore agree that Boris Johnson's boast about his Brexit deal involving no tariffs, quotas or non-tariff barriers is now at odds with the experience of small manufacturing businesses in the Valleys, and what used to be as simple as trading with, say, Bristol or Birmingham is now more complicated than trading with Japan or Canada? Minister,...
Dawn Bowden: In my brief contribution to this debate, I just wanted to make a few general comments on just one or two of the key areas in the final budget. I'll open by saying that I am very pleased to be supporting it, because unlike the UK Tory Government's budget, this Welsh budget is putting our NHS and our vital public services first—public services that have again shown us their true value and...
Dawn Bowden: My previous life as a Unison official in Wales is well known, and I remain very proud of the fact that I was part of the negotiating team working in partnership with the Welsh Labour Government that delivered the living wage into the NHS in Wales, ahead of the rest of the UK, and at a time when NHS colleagues in England were taking strike action against an intransigent UK Tory Government who...
Dawn Bowden: Thank you, Mark Isherwood, for bringing forward this very important debate, and I just wanted to say how apt it is that we discuss such an important matter on the last day of this Senedd term. And I just want to talk very briefly about a family in my constituency. I want to talk about Caden. He lives with his mum, Lisa, in Merthyr Tydfil, and Lisa said that her life stopped the day that she...
Dawn Bowden: [Inaudible.]—I'm trying to get in. Hefin David. I'd like to nominate Hefin David.
Dawn Bowden: Can I thank Heledd Fychan for my first ministerial question? Thank you very much. The Welsh Government is committed to creating a cultural strategy setting out our priorities and ambitions for the arts, culture and sport. This will sit alongside the statements of priorities already created for Creative Wales, Visit Wales and the historic environment.
Dawn Bowden: Thank you, again, for that supplementary question. What I would say in terms of the position of the Minister with responsibility for culture, I think it's more important that the Minister delivers on what is being asked rather than the position in the hierarchy of Government. And I'm very clear about my role in that and my role with the Minister for Economy in making sure that the cultural...
Dawn Bowden: Yes, and can I thank the Member for that question also and agree with him? And I will certainly offer my congratulations to the facility in his constituency and region, in the Vale of Clwyd. These small organisations are a key element of the cultural sector and we need to support them, and we want them to thrive in the post-pandemic world as well. The cultural recovery fund, of course, has...
Dawn Bowden: Well, can I thank Rhianon Passmore for that supplementary question? And I think it is, at this point, worth just saying a little bit about the work that the last Government did on the cultural strategy. My predecessor, Dafydd Elis-Thomas, commissioned strategies across his portfolio, and that included the cultural priorities strategy, and that work was significantly progressed, involving a...
Dawn Bowden: Formally.
Dawn Bowden: Diolch, Llywydd. Can I first of all thank Members for a really interesting debate, on a subject that I'm very, very passionate about? I've been a lifelong sports fan, mainly football. I don't think I'm going to declare my football allegiances in the Chamber today, but suffice to say—[Interruption.] Suffice to say—[Interruption.] Merthyr Town FC. Suffice to say, I've not actually been...
Dawn Bowden: First, like others, I would like to echo the comments made by Members, both today and yesterday, in reflecting on the truly shocking scenes in the European championship involving Christian Eriksen at the weekend. What we witnessed last Saturday highlights the importance of defibrillators and the need for properly trained officials. I'm sure that the whole Chamber will join me in wishing him a...
Dawn Bowden: Can I thank the Member for that question and for the meeting that I had with him on 24 June, when we discussed this issue? Subsequently, I did meet with the FAW and they made several commitments that I expect them to deliver on. Firstly, they agreed to meet the clubs affected by the changes and to discuss any further support that they may need. And I understand that a positive meeting has...
Dawn Bowden: As the Member knows, phase 2 of the pilot events involved nine events here in Wales, including Eid and Tafwyl at Cardiff castle, We Need Bees in Brecon, and Wales versus Albania. All of those were completed successfully and work on the final report will be completed shortly. Ahead of that, many of the findings have informed some of the revised events guidance. We're still in detailed...
Dawn Bowden: I think the guidance that has been issued to all of these organisations is consistent. What is a matter for the organisations themselves is to undertake their own risk assessments based on their venues, their numbers and how they are going to mitigate against the infection. So, whether it's an indoor or an outdoor event. So, the guidance is consistent. What are not, necessarily, are the...
Dawn Bowden: Diolch, Llywydd. I'm certainly very grateful to Paul Davies for instigating this debate today about the importance of protecting our memorials. I know he's raised this matter in the Senedd on several occasions and feels passionately about it, and I agree that Wales's memorials are important parts of our heritage. I don't think there's anyone who can deny the emotional power of these...
Dawn Bowden: The Imperial War Museum maintains a register of war memorials and the Welsh Government has provided financial support to the War Memorials Trust to make information about those memorials more accessible to the public through War Memorials Online. This includes thousands of records and provides a platform for members of the public to get involved by contributing their own photographs and...
