Mark Isherwood: Do you recognise that child poverty in Wales started rising in 2004, that it was already at the highest levels in the UK before the credit crunch and that, a decade ago, 90,000 children in Wales were in severe poverty and over one in four were living in relative poverty? This didn't begin in 2010.
Mark Isherwood: Thank you, Deputy Minister. As I mentioned when you briefed me earlier, I've been out this afternoon to NWAMI's second international panel meeting, held at Cardiff University student union building. NWAMI being originally the North Wales Association for Multicultural Integration, now the Network for World Awareness of Multicultural Integration. Statements from both yourself and the First...
Mark Isherwood: Okay. I'll conclude with a question from Welsh Women's Aid. They've asked: could the Deputy Minister provide an update on the cost of the nationally funded review into domestic and sexual violence provision and when the nationally funded review will engage with providers in Wales, and comment on whether the funds allocated to such reviews could be better spent on securing and expanding local...
Mark Isherwood: When I questioned you at the end of January, after Rehau's initial announcement that they may be closing the site in Amlwch, you replied that you were looking at diversifying to other products within the group that could be diverted temporarily or permanently to the site, or indeed third parties. You also said that this would require a degree of investment, which was what Welsh Government was...
Mark Isherwood: What discussions has the Counsel General had with cabinet colleagues on Wales's future relationship with the EU?
Mark Isherwood: Can I call for two statements? Firstly, an update from the Minister for transport and economy on the north Wales metro. The Welsh Government announced details of what was initially called the north-east Wales metro project in 2017 to improve public transport in north Wales. Today, the local The Leader newspaper has published comments made by the new Labour leader of Flintshire County...
Mark Isherwood: Thank you very much for your statement. As you say, the working group was established to design and deliver together the future of local government in Wales. I love the term 'design and deliver together' because that's co-production. I consulted some colleagues in local government for their take on that. You'll be pleased that one of them came back to me stating that the working group has...
Mark Isherwood: Child poverty in Wales has been rising since 2004. It had already reached the highest level in the UK before the credit crunch, when more than one in four children in Wales were living in poverty, with 90,000 in severe poverty. We know that, last month, the End Child Poverty Network stated that Wales was the only UK nation to see a rise in child poverty last year and, although the Children's...
Mark Isherwood: Well, the past informs the future. Many of the myths and legends that have shaped the heritage and culture of Wales refer back to the common past of the Ancient Britons who lived across Britain, named 'Wælisc', or 'Welsh' or 'foreigner' by the invader, but who instead referred to each other as fellow countrymen and women, as 'Cymry'. We sometimes hear about the Roman era, the conquest of...
Mark Isherwood: 8. What consideration did the Minister give to helping victims of domestic violence when drafting the final budget 2019-20? OAQ54094
Mark Isherwood: Thank you. Well, as Welsh Women's Aid said last month, access to specialist support, where and when survivors of abuse need it, is critical to enable women and girls to achieve safety and reach their full potential. But although there's a Welsh Government commitment to deliver secure and sustainable funding for specialist services, and we have commissioning guidance, secure funding for...
Mark Isherwood: 1. How is the Welsh Government supporting Welsh international trade? OAQ54093
Mark Isherwood: Thank you. According to media coverage, as Brussels has signed new trade deals around the world, goods from partner countries can enter the EU at reduced or zero-tariff rates and then flow free into Turkey, which, although not in the EU, is in the customs union for goods. Turkish companies don't benefit from reciprocal tariff cuts when exporting to those countries because Ankara is not part...
Mark Isherwood: Although the impetus for further democratic diversity must be maintained, the 2017 UK general election delivered the most diverse House of Commons ever, with a rise in the number of women, LGBT, disabled and ethnic minority MPs elected, reflecting the direction of travel already set in this Welsh Parliament. However, as our report states, women, black, Asian and minority ethnic communities,...
Mark Isherwood: I fully endorse Lynne Neagle's call and would ask you to revisit that, bearing in mind that the Children’s Commissioner for Wales in March called for a new child poverty delivery plan in Wales. [Interruption.] Is there a sound problem?
Mark Isherwood: Okay. I voted with Lynne Neagle in the debate she referred to. I fully endorse her call and would ask you to reconsider the specific point that she raised where the Children’s Commissioner for Wales in March called on the Welsh Government for a new child poverty delivery plan. Even before the financial crash, Wales had the highest child poverty levels in the UK: 29 per cent in 2007, 32 per...
Mark Isherwood: 10. How is the Welsh Government supporting pupils with additional learning needs into post-16 education? OAQ54153
Mark Isherwood: Thank you. After the Welsh Government announced in the last Assembly that placements to specialist colleges for students with learning difficulties and learning disabilities would normally now be for two years rather than three, I visited Derwen College in Gobowen just across the border, which takes students from England and Wales. The Welsh Government at the time responded by stating that...
Mark Isherwood: Angela's figures mean that the number of people with sight loss in Wales is expected to double to 222,000 by 2050 and sight loss and blindness affect independence and mobility, including the risk of falls, of injury, mental health, cognition, employment and educational attainment. It's therefore imperative that the Welsh Government and local health boards are robustly held to account over...
Mark Isherwood: The curlew is now considered the most pressing bird conservation priority in the UK, and the relevance of this to your statement will become evident. The 'State of birds in Wales 2018' partnership report shows that losses of curlew have been more acute than in the rest of the UK, with more than three quarters of the Welsh curlew population disappearing over the last 25 years and no hint of...
