Mark Isherwood: Legal aid is intended to help meet the cost of legal advice, family mediation and representation in a court or tribunal. The rules about who qualifies are set out in the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 and regulations referred to by the Counsel General. Whether you qualify will depend on the type of case and your financial circumstances. Does the Counsel General...
Mick Antoniw: ...just a process for the funding of lawyers in legal cases. When it was established in 1949, they were creating an NHS for the law, and it was recognised that access to justice, the right to advice, representation and support, is a fundamental human right. It is not just about the courts, it is about empowerment of people, it is about ensuring that all have genuine rights in society. Is it...
Sarah Murphy: ...increase, 2022 poses a great threat to the most vulnerable households, as we've heard from my fellow committee members today. I know that the Welsh Government continues to make strong and urgent representations to the UK Government on behalf of those in our community who are suffering, yet time and time again, we see decisions made in Westminster that penalise the most vulnerable and...
Mick Antoniw: ...executive of Amnesty International said. This is a body that I think has support across political parties and incredible international status. Sacha Deshmukh, the chief executive, she said, 'Let's not pussyfoot around with this. It is not wrong to say that Government ministers risk aligning themselves with authoritarian regimes if their overhaul of the Human Rights Act is successful.' When...
Rhianon Passmore: ...the international stage.' Fundamentally, any loss or regression or diminution of human rights is deeply worrying and destabilising, both to the individual and to the state. Counsel General, what representations and dialogue with the UK Government are ongoing in this area, and has the Welsh Government clearly expressed its position on the very deeply held concerns about such dangerous...
Mick Antoniw: ...way Hillsborough developed and so on. Now, the proposals, as I understand them, have come, actually, from the Bishop of Liverpool, and three of the key ones were that there'd be a public advocate, representation at inquests, which is something that I've always argued for, and the duty of candour. And, of course, there are others. So, I think that this is something that is a very, very...
Rhianon Passmore: .... With the omicron wave that engulfed us, public health measures were required, and we see encouraging signs, with the infection rate falling for two days in a row. First Minister, I have received representations from hospitality businesses in Islwyn, clearly concerned about the loss of business that they're currently suffering from. What representations has the Welsh Government made to...
Jane Hutt: ...by that proposed cut, which then went ahead. One in four people said they would very likely need to skip meals if the cut to universal credit went ahead, and that cut did go ahead, despite strong representations made in this Chamber by this Welsh Labour Government, across the UK, cross-party Tory voices as well, and from those charities that work at the forefront of tackling child poverty....
Jeremy Miles: I thank the Member for that important question. In a university that has the highest number of Welsh speakers of all the Welsh universities, it is appropriate that students have employed representation in the union, and that would correspond to the representation that we see in other universities in Wales, as the Member mentioned in his contribution. This is a matter for the union's board of...
Jane Hutt: ...from the legislation coming into force, but working in partnership and to recognise that this is something fundamental in terms of how we address this. I will take the opportunity just to respond not in answer to Sarah Murphy, but to a question that was raised with me earlier on as well by Sioned Williams. We're very disappointed about the Law Commission's report on hate crime today, the...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: ...refused planning permission for this development in 2020, but this decision was challenged at the High Court, which subsequently quashed the Government's decision. The recent letter was giving notice to Persimmon that the Deputy Minister is inviting representations on whether the inquiry should be reopened. Not only would I like this inquiry reopened, but I'd like the Government to review...
Jane Hutt: ...—working with my colleagues in Welsh Government, working as a result of our co-operation agreement as we seek to work together to tackle poverty, engaging with the UK Government, making representations and working with our partners in tackling household debt in Wales. Diolch.
Jane Hutt: Diolch, Llywydd, and I'd like to start by thanking Plaid Cymru for bringing this debate today. It not only highlights the rising levels of household debt in Wales outlined by speakers today, but also the steps we're taking as a Welsh Government to mitigate some of the grave hardships being faced. And I also welcome the Equality and Social Justice Committee inquiry into debt and the pandemic....
Heledd Fychan: ...hardship, I think it is important that we recognise today that it is a societal problem that requires action from all of us. That quote read out by Sioned about the Victorian levels of poverty is not an over-exaggeration or over-dramatization of the reality for too many people living in our communities. And increasingly, we see a greater divide, with more and more people struggling to...
Sam Rowlands: ...elected to make those decisions. In addition to those concerns, as the Minister outlined, there are some details in the regulations here today, but there are some pertinent issues that are not being addressed or properly detailed. First of all, staffing. Secondly, the cost of all this, the funding of it. How much will it cost the taxpayer, particularly because there are going to be chief...
Jane Hutt: ...work that's been done with funding from the Deputy Minister for Social Services in terms of Carers Rights Day. I think it is important to recognise that we have serious issues where we are making representations to the UK Government, raising concerns about the impact of welfare reforms in Wales, particularly the impact on certain groups. I'm sure Senedd Members will know from their...
Jane Hutt: ...with our partners across the public, private and voluntary sectors. And it was so important that we had people with lived experience. I co-chaired it with Professor Debbie Foster, but we also had representation from the Welsh Local Government Association and our steering group of disabled people, many of whom also sit on our disability equality forum. The taskforce is crucial in that...
Jane Hutt: ...impacted their mental well-being and their lives. It is also a terrible fact that, across the UK, six in every 10 of COVID-related deaths were of disabled people. Many of these deaths were not the simple inevitable consequence of impairment, with many deaths being clearly rooted in socioeconomic factors. Today, I'm not only reiterating that this Government recognises these inequalities,...
Samuel Kurtz: ...owners were dumping their once-beloved pets on the sides of quiet country lanes, in the hope that their misjudged lockdown purchases could be easily forgotten and erased. Unfortunately, this was not an uncommon occurrence. Up and down Wales, there are rescue centres and sanctuaries that have now reached a crisis point. RSPCA Cymru highlight that the 998 cases of pet abandonment that have...
Mick Antoniw: ...that we hope to bring to reform, to modernise and to bring our electoral system into the twenty-first century. I think it is also fair to say, about the proposals by the UK Government, that it's not intended that they will apply to Welsh elections, and, in any event, the UK Government's legislation is unlikely to come into force before or even be completed by the time of the May 2022...
