Julie James: Yes, it's a very important point. I too have had the real pleasure of working with some of the young people who work with Leonard Cheshire, including last year, in my previous portfolio, meeting with a young man who I very seriously hope to see here amongst us very shortly, who told me that his ambition to be a politician was thwarted by his use of a wheelchair. And I went to some great...
Julie James: I do agree with that statement very much, and, actually, that specific piece of work is in the Deputy Minister's portfolio. I did have responsibility for it in my previous portfolio, so I'm very much aware of it. In terms of what we're trying to do with a broader fair work agenda—what we're trying to do is make sure that, through our social partnership working, we change the culture in...
Julie James: So, again, that's not particularly in my portfolio, so I'll have to ask the Deputy Minister to come back to you about the specifics of that particular programme, which I'm not familiar with, I'm afraid.FootnoteLink We have been, through my Deputy Minister, Hannah Blythyn, in communication with the UK Government on a range of issues to do with welfare. And can I say that I very much welcome...
Julie James: The latest version of 'Planning Policy Wales' puts decarbonisation at the heart of our national planning policy. The forthcoming national development framework will have a similar focus. Our work on the energy efficiency of new homes through building regulations will also contribute to our response to the climate emergency.
Julie James: Yes, well, I don't disagree with the sentiment behind that. There are more complex reasons behind it, and I don't want to comment on an individual planning application about which I know nothing, but there can be other complex issues. It's not always entirely carbon-neutral to remove an old building that is made of completely unrecyclable or unsustainable materials. And that can often create...
Julie James: As I say, we are about to review part L of the building regulations. A lot of things have changed in the last several years around the materials that are available in order to achieve energy efficiency, and there are other issues around the climate emergency, actually, that are really interesting, because one of the biggest issues for Welsh houses now is not heating, it's cooling. So,...
Julie James: The Welsh Government’s position on the question of independence is very clear: we believe Wales is best served by being part of the United Kingdom. But the union has to change to successfully meet the unprecedented challenges it faces. Local democracy will continue to play a vital role in this.
Julie James: Well, Llywydd, town councils are local democracy in action, and if they want to make declarations about a number of things that are outwith their powers, I'm not in any position to say one way or the other whether they should do so. The Welsh Government has always been very clear that we think that Wales's best interests are best protected as part of a well-functioning union. We've...
Julie James: Well, Llywydd, as the Minister for Local Government and Housing, I don't often get to comment on matters of these sorts, but I share Dai Lloyd's frustration at some of the things that the current Government of the United Kingdom is doing without sharing his concerns about the United Kingdom itself, and that is the essential difference between us. But I also don't share his constant running...
Julie James: It was.
Julie James: I am not able to make an announcement about the future of Help to Buy in Wales until there is clarity about the level of consequential we'll receive from the UK Government. I do hope that we will have that clarity in the autumn.
Julie James: No, I don't share those concerns. We know that some 6 per cent of all completions on Help to Buy were, in fact, by first-time buyers, and they have proved an important element of the additional 20,000 affordable homes, with many of them being at affordable rent. The number of purchases at the scheme's inception stood at 8,731, and we've got another 827 applications for loans in the pipeline,...
Julie James: Certainly. The future of the planning system will be based on the 'Planning Policy Wales' document, published last December, and the national development framework, which we will consult on over the summer. They align the planning system directly and systematically with the requirements of the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015.
Julie James: Yes, actually, already the local authority can take quite a bit of action in terms of what it says in its local development plan, so I would very much encourage the Member to ensure that his local planning authority takes cognisance of any of the things that are raised through his constituency office, and actually looks locally to make sure that it has all of the right provisions in its own...
Julie James: Yes. I'm delighted to be able to tell the Member that the local authority could already do that. We completely revised 'Planning Policy Wales' to reflect the goals and ways of working set out in the well-being of future generations Act just last December. And if the local authority wants to revise its LDP in the light of that new document, which has placemaking at the heart of the national...
Julie James: So, a range of things there. In terms of broadening the list of statutory consultees, statutory consultees are expected to provide a substantive response to the local planning authority within 21 days when consulted on planning applications, and 28 days of a pre-application consultation. That can be a significant undertaking. We do need to be sure that the local health board would be in a...
Julie James: Yes. Local authority services play an important role in the lives of the people of Wales. The Welsh Government continues to protect funding for our local authorities so that those vital services, both statutory and non-statutory, can continue to be provided.
Julie James: I do entirely agree with your analysis. The Member Mike Hedges is very aware that the Welsh Government has done its very best to protect local government in Wales from the worst of the budget cuts imposed by the UK Government. I'd just reiterate again, in case Members of the opposite benches are too bored with this, that the Welsh Government's resource budget this year is almost £1 billion...
Julie James: Yes, I very much welcome that approach, and we do have some very innovative schemes right across Wales, where local authorities have really worked very hard to keep services going in a range of different ways, through third sector and other organisations, local community organisations, town and community councils and so on. There's a range of very creative ways forward. The youth work...
Julie James: We'll be implementing the Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016 during this term of Government, and I'm also consulting on proposals to extend the minimum notice period under section 173 of that Act.
