Mabon ap Gwynfor: Thank you, Minister. Most goods have to be transported by lorries and vans along our roads in north Wales, and that's true for the most part in all of rural Wales. There's virtually no freight carried on the tracks of mid and north Wales. If we want to see fewer carbon emissions from vehicles, then we do have to carry more goods via rail. Now, the Welsh Government's freight strategy in 2008...
Mabon ap Gwynfor: Thank you, Llywydd. You'll be pleased to know that I'm ready this time. Following on from my colleague Delyth Jewell's question earlier—
Mabon ap Gwynfor: 3. What assessment has the Minister undertaken of COVID-19 rates? OQ57115
Mabon ap Gwynfor: —drwy weddill Cymru?
Mabon ap Gwynfor: Thank you very much for that, Minister. Well, very many people are contacting my office, and have done so over the past week or two, concerned that they can't access the booster jab. They have large distances to travel to visit a surgery offering the booster jab, and many people are reliant on public transport. Of course, you will understand that they are therefore reluctant to travel on a...
Mabon ap Gwynfor: 1. Will the Minister make a statement on the Welsh Government's decision to cancel the Llanbedr bypass in Gwynedd? TQ576
Mabon ap Gwynfor: Thank you very much, Deputy Minister. Well, the Valleys taskforce, which was chaired by yourself some years ago, recommended the dualling of the Heads of the Valleys road, in a project that, in total, will have cost over £1 billion, enabling tens of thousands of vehicles to travel at 70 mph on that road every year. Now, amongst the arguments put forward for that dualling was the fact that it...
Mabon ap Gwynfor: Thank you very much, acting Presiding Officer, and thank you very much to Rhun for bringing this very important topic to the Chamber today. The words of Gareth are echoed by the young people of Dwyfor Meirionnydd, I can tell you that. It’s been a privilege for me to visit centres and to speak to people across Dwyfor Meirionnydd since my election. But, in speaking to homelessness charities,...
Mabon ap Gwynfor: Thank you very much, Llywydd, and I hope the Minister has recovered after having suffered a cold last week. Following the election, the Government announced a plan to tackle the second homes crisis, which would include a pilot area. There are communities the length and breadth of the country feeling the impacts of this broad and damaging crisis. My concern, along with communities the length...
Mabon ap Gwynfor: Thank you very much, Minister, for that response to a political question in a political chamber. I want to turn now to the issue of gas power stations. Despite the seeming commitment of the Welsh Government to decarbonise, as is incorporated in your net-zero strategy, it's come to our attention that we here in Wales, or rather the Welsh Government, continue to allow planning permission for...
Mabon ap Gwynfor: Thank you very much, Minister. I would be delighted to see that transition plan, and I welcome your words on marine energy too, because that, of course, is the way forward. I want to turn finally to the issue of discretionary housing payments. In this regard, I want to focus on how effective local authorities are in using this addition of over £4 million for discretionary housing payments....
Mabon ap Gwynfor: Thank you, Janet. The fishing industry is extremely important to our communities here in Wales, and to the communities of Dwyfor Meirionnydd. The sector has huge potential and it's an ongoing surprise to me that the Government doesn't do more to invest in this sector and to secure its viability. I had the privilege of going crab and lobster fishing with Sion Williams from Porth Colmon over...
Mabon ap Gwynfor: For the record, I have a home where I have a long-term tenant in situ in Aberystwyth. Thank you very much for the statement, Minister. There are generations of people who have been campaigning to encourage governments to take action on this crisis, a crisis that's been facing some of our communities over decades. Back at the beginning of the 1980s, my predecessor in Dwyfor, Dafydd Wigley,...
Mabon ap Gwynfor: Thank you very much, Rhys, if I may thank him, Deputy Presiding Officer, for bringing this debate forward today. And thank you also to Mike Hedges and Peter Fox for supporting this debate. Here, we have quite simply an issue of fundamental justice. Who should pay for the work of assessing and remedying these large buildings that are a threat to the health and safety of the people living...
Mabon ap Gwynfor: What action is the Welsh Government taking to tackle fuel poverty in Dwyfor Meirionnydd?
Mabon ap Gwynfor: Thank you very much, Dirprwy Lywydd. Good afternoon and thank you, Minister, for that statement. Deputy Llywydd, it's sad to say, but the latest homelessness statistics here in Wales paint a sad picture, and partly because of the cruel policies of Boris Johnson and his unprincipled Government in Westminster. For example, almost 1,400 homeless people were moved into temporary accommodation...
Mabon ap Gwynfor: Thank you very much, Dirprwy Lywydd. I want to apologise to you, Dirprwy Lywydd, for failing to declare an interest at the beginning of the debate and my contribution. I want to draw your attention to my declaration of interest on the ownership of property, which, of course, is in the public domain. Thank you.
Mabon ap Gwynfor: What assessment has the Welsh Government made of the quality of mental health services in Dwyfor Meirionnydd?
Mabon ap Gwynfor: Thank you very much, Deputy Presiding Officer, and thank you for the opportunity to table this motion today, and may I thank all the other Members who have supported it? The number of Members who have supported the motion is testament to the importance of the subject. Cancer, of course, is something that is very close to us all—far too close, actually. My father is a cancer patient, and has...
Mabon ap Gwynfor: Just under 20,000 people are diagnosed with cancer in Wales every year, and it's now widely known that cancer kills more people in Wales than any other disease. The good news is that the survival rate for this disease is increasing, with 60 per cent of patients diagnosed between 2014 and 2018 surviving their cancer for five years or longer, which shows that treatments are improving. However,...
