Mark Isherwood: The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Disabled Persons, adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on 9 December 1975, states that all disabled persons have the same rights as other persons, and recognises the obstacles created by social institutions and society in general—the social model of disability that Helen Mary referred to. Although non-binding, the declaration marked...
Mark Isherwood: As Disability Wales state, if the UN declaration or convention were incorporated into Welsh law, this would raise the profile of disabled people's rights within Welsh Government, require consideration of disabled people's rights in legislation and policy brought forward by Ministers, establish an accountability framework ensuring strategic implementation and monitoring, as well as greater...
Mark Isherwood: —and, finally, strengthen the involvement of disabled people and their representative organisations in informing and influencing policy. Diolch.
Mark Isherwood: How does the Welsh Government oversee compliance with the public sector equality duty?
Mark Isherwood: Could I call for two statements? The first one is on post-polio syndrome ahead of Post-polio Syndrome Day next Monday, 22 October. It was launched in 2013 to raise awareness of post-polio syndrome amongst the general public, and the date chosen, 22 October, to be close to the official World Polio Day, marked on 24 October, by Rotary's End Polio Now campaign. People in remote regions with...
Mark Isherwood: Thank you for your statement. You state that the new framework and plan, 'Action on Disability: The Right to Independent Living' replaces the framework for action on independent living. Of course, the framework for action on independent living is specifically named in the Part 2 code of practice for the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014. Can you confirm that you will be,...
Mark Isherwood: In terms of roll-out, how will you ensure that this is better understood by public sector bodies and commissioners? I'll give one example. Last year, I had a haemophiliac constituent, a young man who was offered a job by Flintshire council. The job offer was subsequently withdrawn on the advice of the council's occupational physician, as they termed the person, although the constituent and...
Mark Isherwood: Okay. I was just going to conclude, therefore, by asking you to work with the Assembly Commission to recognise and address barriers to independent living for disabled people identified by, for example, the disabled people seeking to access and attend the Cross-Party Group on Disability, the Cross-Party Group on Neurological Conditions, tomorrow's joint meeting—disability, older people...
Mark Isherwood: Well, as you say, you were born and brought up in the south Wales Valleys and understand the history and beauty of the landscape. Clearly, I wasn't born and brought up in the south Wales Valleys, but I can assure you I fully appreciate the history of the area and love the beauty of that landscape, and, of course, the tremendous people who live within it. You say you've worked closely with...
Mark Isherwood: In seeking to delete our motion, which reflects the concern expressed to us by staff and patients throughout the year about the capacity of the Welsh NHS to meet demand, the Welsh Government is recycling lines that we have heard so often before. I've participated in similar debates throughout the last four Assemblies, and each time the Welsh Government has dodged responsibility by asking us...
Mark Isherwood: What is the Welsh Government's policy on the provision of education for pupils educated other than at school?
Mark Isherwood: How is the Welsh Government supporting adult learning?
Mark Isherwood: In 2012, Network Rail estimated the cost of reinstating the Amlwch rail line at more than £25 million. In consequence, in December 2014, I asked the First Minister to consider supporting reopening the stretch from Gaerwen to Llangefni as a heritage connection, and, of course, this bridge would be critical. I said the precedent had been established in Llangollen with the link to Corwen, not...
Mark Isherwood: Can I call for two statements, the first one on British Sign Language? I believe the last statement made by the Welsh Government was made by our former colleague Carl Sargeant on 20 October 2016 when he rightly said that: 'For Deaf people who use British Sign Language (BSL), appropriate communication support contributes to social inclusion and equal access to services...as a gateway to...
Mark Isherwood: Four months ago.
Mark Isherwood: Given that the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014 code, too, requires the boards to work with people and communities to design and deliver services, what requirement will you, if any, be applying to your decisions regarding proposed spending to ensure that, for example, if this applies to the deaf community, the deaf community have been involved, or the autistic community, then...
Mark Isherwood: Diolch. On 21 August, I attended the stakeholder engagement event in Wrexham, held by HM Prison and Probation Service in Wales to discuss future probation services in Wales and the proposals contained in the recently published 'Strengthening probation, building confidence' consultation paper. We heard that: 'In Wales, the proposals consulted on are that, from 2020 all offender management...
Mark Isherwood: They told us that they will build upon the unique arrangements they already have in Wales through their established prisons and probation directorate. As they stated, this will better reflect the devolved responsibilities of the Welsh Government and build on existing local partnerships that probation services have successfully developed. I therefore move our amendment 1 to this effect. As...
Mark Isherwood: I think there would have been a decimation, but it would be decimation by bureaucratic control rather than imaginative evolution of services, because we must co-produce together. The state is not very good, except in terms of NHS, at running services. Its job there is to make sure they're delivered. Operational reality is instead reflected—
Mark Isherwood: Operational reality is instead therefore reflected by the increased operational collaboration seen with Merseyside and Cheshire police, reported by North Wales Police in areas such as firearms, intelligence, custody, property and forensics. To devolve criminal justice otherwise would be to pursue political goals, dismembering the UK, from certain people over there, or a political grab for...
