David Melding: Cabinet Secretary, are you disappointed that Stop Climate Chaos Cymru has said that Ministers are yet to deliver on climate change policy, and that WWF Cymru warns of an ambition gap?
David Melding: Cabinet Secretary, carbon budgets are at the heart of the environment Act, and they’re now not expected until the end of 2018. And I think it’s reasonable for us to ask, ‘Why the delay?’ Does it really take three years to produce the first carbon budgets? We’ll be halfway through this Assembly, and those budgets are supposed to help you prioritise and us to scrutinise.
David Melding: Minister, to emphasise the drift in policy implementation, I must ask why the strategic impact assessments for your department are so vague. They’re at the heart of the future generations Act, and they do not seem to have played much of a part in your budget priorities or choices. Is it not the truth that this Government is keen on legislation, but very poor on implementation, as Stop...
David Melding: Will the Minister make a statement on how the Welsh Government could work with local authorities to produce innovative solutions to the delivery of public services in Wales?
David Melding: First Minister, these fees are something of a horror. There aren’t many goods and services where we actually get charged for the process of purchase, and there’s clear support all around the house for action to be taken on this. These fees do distort the market. They’re a disincentive to the mobility of labour, and the clear experience in Scotland is that the charges would be absorbed...
David Melding: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. Can I also thank the Cabinet Secretary for his statement, and also the courtesy of giving us the statement, or sight of the statement, a good few hours in advance—that’s very helpful? I’d like to start with areas where I think there is going to be agreement all around the Assembly. I think the goal of zero waste and a circular economy is an important...
David Melding: Can I thank the Cabinet Secretary for the statement, and also for the advance copy of the statement that she’s just made? Quite wide-ranging—I think, if I could be critical, rather low-wattage: we need a bit more oomph in this, probably the most critical area of Government policy. Can I just start first of all—? And there are many areas where we agree with the Government’s approach;...
David Melding: I do apologise. Small-scale generation opportunities are there, and I think that can also create more community ownership and also more investment opportunities. In an age of low interest rates, there are opportunities here for people to get a fair return on their savings—and a general use of new technologies such as tidal. Thank you.
David Melding: Would the Cabinet Secretary give way?
David Melding: I just wonder, we’ve heard a lot about the context we’re in for these particular budgets now, but let this wicked Tory observe that what happened between 2010 and 2015 with the coalition Government was not a million miles away from the Darling plan.
David Melding: Will the First Minister make a statement on how the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015 is being integrated into the work of the Welsh Government?
David Melding: Cabinet Secretary, can I urge all appropriate support from the Welsh Government? This will be a wonderful project for Blaenau Gwent, Gwent as a whole and all of Wales, because the marketing potential would just be vast. You’ve chosen there a highly popular, innovative sport, really the sort of image we want to project—that Wales is open for new and exciting business.
David Melding: 3. Will the Minister make a statement on the availability of common ailment schemes in pharmacies in South Wales Central? OAQ(5)0078(HWS)
David Melding: Minister, I’m encouraged about Cwm Taf, but, as you know, 20 of the most common illnesses can be treated in pharmacies very well, and this relieves pressure on GPs. There is an advertising scheme—I think probably run by NHS England, but it still has application here in Wales—encouraging people to seek early advice, including visiting their pharmacies. Now, as I understand, there is...
David Melding: Llywydd, 100 years ago, David Lloyd George became Prime Minister. The Government he formed led the allies to a hard-won victory, massively extended the franchise, and established health and housing as governmental priorities. Wales seemed to find a hero figure—the Arthur of legend. The first man without independent means to become Prime Minister, Lloyd George demonstrated that the Welsh...
David Melding: Can I welcome this UKIP debate and also commend the opening speech by Gareth Bennett, which analysed very effectively and thoroughly the current situation and, I thought, made a very persuasive case? So, we do give a general welcome to this policy shift. I think it’s very important to reflect the change in society. We now have generation rent. It will take us a long time to build the...
David Melding: First Minister, I’d invite you to walk through Cogan if you want to really experience poor air quality—it’s quite astonishingly bad there. I walk through Cogan quite frequently. It’s clear that we need to reduce the number of needless journeys, or journeys that are not shared—so, you know, just one occupant driving the car. There are many quick wins we can gain, and that ought to be...
David Melding: Can I just start by saying I’ve learnt something that the laws of Hywel Dda are dated to 962, and Dai also mentioned this, but Hywel died in 950? But I suppose it took the monks of Whitland a little while to produce the manuscript. But, anyway, it does seem that our law making and dealing with our fundamental constitutional law takes a little while, so perhaps I should bear that in mind....
David Melding: 8. What are the implications for the Welsh Government following the C40 Mayors Summit in which Paris, Athens, Madrid and Mexico City committed to diesel free status by 2025? OAQ(5)0076(ERA)
David Melding: It’s quite clear the message here is that urban areas, to be really attractive for the local population, but also inward investment and their economic health, require clean air—the best quality possible. There are ways that we can manage that now, even before we formally ban diesel cars. It’s really important that, in Wales, we see the leadership we could be giving for the whole of the...
