Jane Hutt: Diolch yn fawr, Dirprwy Lywydd. Racism and race inequalities have adversely impacted global society for hundreds of years. Back in October 2020, the Senedd supported a motion to wholeheartedly root out racism and racist ideology, and strive towards a more equal Wales, tackling systemic and structural race inequality. The Runnymede Trust says that racial inequalities persist in almost every...
Jane Hutt: The detail and scale of the race equality action plan is bold, to reflect our ambitious and radical vision for Wales—a vision of a Wales that is anti-racist. Not non-racist, not more equal—a Wales in which there is zero tolerance for racism in all its forms. Taking this stance is vitally important to our black, Asian and minority ethnic stakeholders and communities because it provides for...
Jane Hutt: Thank you very much, Laura, and thank you for your kind words and for your support for this plan. It does take me back to that debate we had back in October 2020. It was a debate and a motion that was supported by the vast majority of Senedd Members, a real cross-party consensus that we want to tackle racism and race inequality in Wales. Actually, it did recognise the need for a race equality...
Jane Hutt: Thank you very much, Leanne. And thank you, Leanne, because I know of your commitment to this and you've spoken up and it's very clear that, again, your support for the way forward in terms of tackling racism and racial injustice in Wales is something that you clearly embrace. And that's why it's so important that we've actually, in a sense, enabled black, Asian and minority ethnic people to...
Jane Hutt: Diolch yn fawr, John Griffiths, and can I thank you, in your capacity as Chair of the Equality, Local Government and Communities Committee, for bringing this to the fore, in terms of your seminal reports in terms of exposing the inequalities, as a result of the impact of coronavirus, particularly on black, Asian, and minority ethnic people in communities, but also other people in groups with...
Jane Hutt: Thank you very much, Jenny Rathbone, and thank you for all your support in this area and your commitment to an anti-racist Wales, because that's the vision—it's an anti-racist Wales. It was fantastic at the weekend to see national headlines outside of Wales saying, 'Lessons on black history to be compulsory in Welsh schools'. That was a headline. Thanks to Kirsty Williams for accepting all...
Jane Hutt: Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd, and I'd like to start by thanking the Chair and the committee for leading the inquiry into the implantation of the well-being of future generations Act, and what more can be done to make it a success. I think the approach taken shows that the legislation can't be considered just by one committee, nor is it the responsibility of one Welsh Government Minister; it is our...
Jane Hutt: Thank you very much, Llywydd. As we near the UK Government’s deadline of 30 June for European Union settlement scheme applications, I am pleased to provide an update on the Welsh Government’s position and the support we continue to provide to EU citizens here in Wales.
Jane Hutt: All EU, European Economic Area or Swiss citizens who were resident in the UK by 31 December 2020 are required by the UK Government to apply to the EU settlement scheme by Wednesday 30 June 2021, to secure their status to continue to live and work here. This is not a position I wanted our EU citizens to find themselves in. The Welsh Government has long advocated and called on the UK Government...
Jane Hutt: We know there are people who have not yet applied to the scheme, and there are a number of reasons which we believe are contributing to this: some EU citizens may have come to live in the UK many years ago and do not realise that they need to apply; some may have had children whilst living here and are not aware that applications must be made for each family member. Others face digital...
Jane Hutt: Well, thank you very much, Mark Isherwood, and I very much welcome you back into the Senedd, alongside myself, and obviously covering these key issues of social justice. And I thank you for not only your questions and points but also for urging people to apply, obviously across your region and across Wales. And I know that will be, I'm sure, echoed by all Senedd Members today. Indeed, we also...
Jane Hutt: Diolch yn fawr, Peredur, and thank you very much for those key, important points. I'm very glad you also drew attention to the report of the Welsh Affairs Committee. It has been a matter of great concern as a result of the pandemic. That's why the deadline, we wish to—. We've asked the UK Government repeatedly, pressed the UK Government, to extend the deadline of 30 June 2021, particularly...
Jane Hutt: Thank you very much to Jenny Rathbone for the recognition of the importance of this statement, and also the recognition of the needs and circumstances of your constituents, particularly those who are the most excluded and on lower incomes and who haven't had access to the information that they require to ensure that they do get their applications in. Also, many people are not aware, and...
Jane Hutt: Diolch yn fawr, Huw Irranca-Davies, and thank you for giving that very real and personal example of your Welsh-Italian family and how they have accessed and achieved that settled status, which is what we need to ensure all our citizens who are eligible are able to do. You asked a specific question about Members of the Senedd. I think, probably, all of you are already thinking, 'What can I...
Jane Hutt: Diolch yn fawr, Dirprwy Lywydd. Prejudice is a burden that confuses the past, threatens the future, and renders the present inaccessible. These words, which were spoken by Maya Angelou more than 30 years ago, still echo as loudly today. Today marks the fourth national Windrush Day, a day that recognises and celebrates the contributions of men and women across the Commonwealth who helped to...
Jane Hutt: Thank you very much. Diolch yn fawr, Altaf Hussain. Thank you very much for those very important words. And, as you say, it is difficult to address and challenge our structural racism. It can go, and has gone unnoticed for too long. It's been hidden, and, of course, it has affected the chances of so many. So, eradicating racism and promoting race equality—always been a priority for the...
Jane Hutt: Thank you, Sioned Williams, and thank you very much for your questions.
Jane Hutt: I'm also really delighted to welcome you—and congratulate you, which I haven't had the opportunity to do—to be the spokesperson on social justice for Plaid Cymru, and to respond to your questions on this very important statement, which I know Plaid Cymru has fully backed. Indeed, it was very good, in the previous Senedd, when the committee that was chaired by John Griffiths, which...
Jane Hutt: Thank you very much, Joyce Watson, and thank you for drawing this to our attention today—this key area of racism in sport, and the blight, the shameful way in which so many of our sportsmen and women are treated to racist abuse, and the racist abuse that’s there on social media. We don’t all see that. They see that racist abuse after performing brilliantly in their sport and showing...
Jane Hutt: Well, certainly, that is something that we would do anyway. The Wales race equality action plan has a whole range of actions relating to education, including higher education, and looking at these issues in relation to the expectations we have of our higher education institutions clearly is part of that in terms of the importance of that definition. Thank you.
