Mark Reckless: Diolch, Llywydd, for letting Laura Anne Jones go on. I was enjoying her contribution. Indeed, I've been enjoying the debate in general. Thank you, Jenny, for your contribution. My view on this is one that is on balance—it will, I think, go against most people here, but, on balance, I've decided to vote against the general principles of the Bill. But, for me, it is a finely balanced decision...
Mark Reckless: 8. Will the Minister make a statement on the role of local authorities in the COVID-19 response in Wales? OQ56050
Mark Reckless: Thank you, Minister. We have quite a number of relatively small local authorities in Wales and two of the very smallest are in my region—Merthyr Tydfil and Blaenau Gwent—and they coincide with some of the very highest levels of COVID infection currently. And I just wonder, is the Minister sure that they will be able to cope with the extent of that challenge, given the small size, and are...
Mark Reckless: The First Minister told us how awful this deal was, just as he told us how awful the three varieties of Theresa May's deal were, and just as he tells us how awful no deal would be. As far as he's concerned, the only deal that he could support is continued EU membership, and rather than supporting the democratic decision that Wales as well as the UK had taken, he instead decided with his...
Mark Reckless: Minister, in south-east Wales we have on average suffered a higher level of coronavirus than the average across Wales, and I just wondered to what degree you consider that the extra costs of dealing with that on a regional level, where incidence has been higher, are met by the allocations in the budget.
Mark Reckless: Can I check if I can be heard?
Mark Reckless: Thank you. Constitutional matters cease to be esoteric when they come to determine whether your mother or your grandfather receives a live-saving vaccination. Welsh Ministers may not want to sprint or compete, but the speed with which we vaccinate and the fact that we are lagging the rest of the UK in Wales inevitably reflects on devolution. Many in Wales may only last year have become aware...
Mark Reckless: However, the meaning of legislative references to 'the Secretary of State' changed for many functions in Wales long before devolution in 1999, with the creation of a Secretary of State for Wales in 1964 and the establishment of the Welsh Office in 1965. It may be hard to imagine Cledwyn Hughes, let alone George Thomas, declaring a unilateral declaration of independence on how to manage a...
Mark Reckless: When Wales voted against devolution in 1979, it was asked to vote again in 1997, but after voting for it then by however narrow a margin, no chance to reconsider has been allowed. Fair enough, you may say, if such a referendum should be no more than a once-in-a-generation event. Perhaps 24 years is not yet quite a generation, with the average age at which we have our first children rising,...
Mark Reckless: 8. Will the First Minister make a statement on the Welsh Government's proposals for constitutional developments in Wales? OQ56160
Mark Reckless: It's a fascinating document, but, First Minister, we're currently seeing the impact of vaccinations being devolved. What would it be like if, as you want, you also get your hands on justice or can borrow money with no restraint? When devolution is a process that only ever moves in one direction—towards independence—how can people become comfortable with it? If there is no devolution...
Mark Reckless: Minister, you complain that UK Government isn't prepared to fund anything and that the M4 relief road was too expensive at £2 billion, but there have been a number of suggestions around UK Government that the shared prosperity fund, indeed the internal market Bill, could be used for this. If there's a chance of getting up to £2 billion out of the UK Government to deal with the congestion...
Mark Reckless: 8. Will the Minister make a statement on the pace of vaccine roll-out in Wales? OQ56138
Mark Reckless: Minister, may I associate myself and my party with your remarks about the safety and efficacy of the vaccine? I—and, I think, all of us—would encourage people to take the vaccine as soon as it is offered to them. May I ask you: following the First Minister saying he'd clarified his remarks, could you clarify—has he actually retracted his statement that we should make the Pfizer vaccine...
Mark Reckless: But has he retracted? You haven't answered.
Mark Reckless: Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd. I move amendments 3 and 4 formally. May I congratulate the Independent Alliance for Reform group on securing this debate? May I also thank them for pushing it forward a week from last week, which gave me the opportunity to have my short debate on constitutional developments in Wales in prime time, for which I'm grateful? I'd also like to say that we're supportive of...
Mark Reckless: I think we all appreciate the extraordinary work that the staff in Aneurin Bevan and elsewhere are doing with the vaccination. First Minister, I've had a number of constituents who've come to me saying that relatives who are over 80, or indeed, in some cases, in care homes, are yet to have their vaccination in the Aneurin Bevan area, yet they have other family, over the border in...
Mark Reckless: Minister, may I thank you for the update today and may I also thank you for everything else you're doing? Although my party would prefer the UK Government to be leading the programme rather than Welsh Government, that doesn't mean we don't appreciate the amount of work that's being put in. You seem to be working extraordinary hours under extraordinary pressure and I would like to thank you...
Mark Reckless: Of course; final bit—the second doses for those who've already had the first dose versus moving down the risk profile in providing vaccination with that Pfizer vaccine?
Mark Reckless: I hope one advantage of sending out those letters is when people get them, fewer will be ringing up and complaining that they haven't got it and worrying and taking time that could be used for the programme, and I hope everyone will get their vaccinations when they are offered. We support the motion that is before us today. We intend to abstain on the Government amendment, but support the...
