Huw Irranca-Davies: What discussions has the Minister had with the Minister for Finance and Local Government on the impact of the draft budget on social justice?
Huw Irranca-Davies: I welcome this debate this afternoon. It will not come as any surprise that, as Chair of the committee with constitutional matters as a core part of its remit, I am contributing today. As a committee, we have not considered the report in detail, but we have discussed it briefly last week in advance of today's statement. My focus this afternoon will be to highlight matters within the interim...
Huw Irranca-Davies: I note the commission’s conclusion that there are, 'significant problems with the way Wales is currently governed', and that it has identified 10 immediate pressure points on the current settlement. Now, it’s interesting that these mainly relate to 'relations between the UK and Welsh governments'— a view that indeed chimes with some of our observations as a committee during our scrutiny...
Huw Irranca-Davies: Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd. We laid our report on this LCM on 23 November 2022. We drew two conclusions and made three recommendations, and we’re very grateful to the Minister for his response to our report. As the Minister has said, the Bill amends procurement legislation to meet the requirements of the UK-Australia and UK-New Zealand free trade agreements, but is to be repealed by the UK...
Huw Irranca-Davies: Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd, and I'm speaking in my capacity as Chair of the Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee, although, if I have time at the end, I have just one other point to add, taking that hat off. Our committee laid our report on the draft budget yesterday afternoon, and I thank committee members and our clerk team for their rapid and diligent scrutiny. Our scrutiny of the...
Huw Irranca-Davies: Diolch, Llywydd. I'd like to open my contribution this afternoon by thanking the committee members and our clerking team, but also by emphasising that one of the key questions my committee considers is whether a Bill is fit for purpose as a piece of law. As a general rule, we don't comment on the merits of the policy it contains. The Minister told us that the Bill is a framework Bill, with...
Huw Irranca-Davies: Will the Minister give way on that? I don't want to push this point but, curiously, actually, it's quite reassuring to hear the words on record and to hear the words in front of committees, but that, you recognise, is not quite the same as having on the face of the Bill not that this is informed by, but this is that definition or a version of it. I just want to make that point, because there...
Huw Irranca-Davies: In addition to the laudable target to achieve 70 per cent of Wales's electricity demand from renewable sources by 2030, of course by 2035 we're aiming for 100 per cent renewable generation. But we also have to find, and it's within your plans there, a fivefold increase in electricity generation from those renewable sources by 2050. It's an enormous challenge, but it's a great opportunity,...
Huw Irranca-Davies: Minister, I hope you enjoyed your visit to our excellent schools in Ffaldau and Llangynwyd last week.
Huw Irranca-Davies: When we were there we visited in Llangynwyd the arts lesson that was going on, and what struck me with the new curriculum was that they were using that art session to develop issues around identity, around mental health, as well as actually teaching very good skills in art. And then they were incorporating that into other aspects of the curriculum being taught in other lessons. It was, I...
Huw Irranca-Davies: Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd. We all recognise the health and well-being benefits of getting out into the great outdoors, and walking is a great way to do that. But, we're not all going to head up Pen y Fan or Eryri, and nor should we have to. What if there was a way to work with people right across Wales to improve nature and access to walking in their local areas? That's a great idea, and it's...
Huw Irranca-Davies: Thank you for giving way so early in your contribution. I just wanted to pick up on the issue of cross-party support. As you know, there are Members like myself, David Rees and others, who have spoken very much in favour of developing the potential of these. I think the challenge here is that you can't get away from the fact that there are some real difficulties with the principle of free...
Huw Irranca-Davies: Will the Member give way?
Huw Irranca-Davies: Will you take an intervention?
Huw Irranca-Davies: Could I just point him back towards the pre-2020 Government, which invested £16 million in the north-east area coast? It didn’t require a free port—it was just investment, which then enabled Siemens to develop its capacity for offshore wind. It doesn’t need to be free ports to do this. What it needs to be is strategic Government investment. Now I, of course, will always welcome...
Huw Irranca-Davies: Will the Minister give way on that point?
Huw Irranca-Davies: Minister, thank you for giving way, because there's a danger that this debate can get polarised into you're either pro free ports entirely or against them entirely. But, actually, the pragmatic approach of working with the deck of cards that we are dealt and dealing with that in a pragmatic way, Government to Government and so on, is right, it's the right way to go, but we really have to...
Huw Irranca-Davies: Would you give way?
Huw Irranca-Davies: It's only a brief point, because the differences I've been expressing today are not to do with one of the single bids, it's the disadvantages that case studies have shown over free ports and enterprise zones—that's actually in your amendment. So, you've not acknowledged at all that there are disadvantages or addressed how we avoid them.
Huw Irranca-Davies: 2. What discussions has the Minister had with the Minister for Climate Change and the Minister for Social Justice regarding Welsh Government support to ease the financial pressures on scheduled bus services? OQ59129
