Nick Ramsay: The electrification of the Great Western main line has clearly been a major plus and will be a major plus for the Welsh, south Wales, economy.
Nick Ramsay: Will the Minister make a statement on the resilience of transport infrastructure in Wales?
Nick Ramsay: I'd like to ask for a statement on water resilience. You may find that a strange thing for me to ask, given the flooding of recent times, so perhaps I should say: drinking water resilience across Wales. I know that we have a statement on the emergency flood summit immediately after this statement. I think that this is an issue that may or may not come up during that statement, Minister, but...
Nick Ramsay: I'm pleased to contribute to today's important debate. I think an important point to be made at the start of this debate is that nobody—certainly nobody in this Chamber—denies that the NHS needs to change and to change in a transformative way that makes it fit for the twenty-first century, not just the twentieth-century, for which it was originally designed. It is, of course, the type of...
Nick Ramsay: Minister, aside from the statutory age ranges that are set out with regard to the five to 16 and the different ages that children will receive sex education, relationship education, I think you're on record previously as saying that there will be a certain amount of credence given to the developmental point of children within that cycle. So, perhaps there is a way, a compromise solution too...
Nick Ramsay: I'll keep my comments brief, as I really just wanted to speak primarily with my public accounts Chair hat on, and specifically, looking through the amendments, Plaid Cymru's amendment 2 calls for 'a clear and streamlined set of indicators by which the Welsh Government can be held to account', a good amendment, certainly pointing things in the right direction. This is pretty much the thrust of...
Nick Ramsay: Trefnydd, you'll be aware that the Minister for health has issued a written statement on the coronavirus, a statement that is very helpful. It refers to the need to keep our legislation in Wales under review, I think in light of the fact that the UK Government is introducing legislation with the purpose of mitigating any effects of the coronavirus and looking at treatment options—enforcing...
Nick Ramsay: Will the Member take an intervention?
Nick Ramsay: Thanks for giving way, Rhun. I quite agree with you and other Members that a clean air Act is certainly a positive way to go, but would you agree with me that we've had Acts such as the active travel Act before, and, of course, the future generations Act, all of which are well meaning and have a good basis for the future, but, if you don't actually have those practical measures on the ground...
Nick Ramsay: Will you take an intervention?
Nick Ramsay: Thanks for giving way. It's been a really productive debate so far. I agree with Members who've said that we need to, as the Minister has said, really ramp up the charging point infrastructure—that's clearly important. As to the future, in Europe there have been some prototype towns where they're looking at Wi-Fi charging, which might be one way of continually charging vehicles along roads...
Nick Ramsay: Will the Member take an intervention?
Nick Ramsay: I would say 'A good Conservative position there: reform not for the sake of reform', but I take it in the spirit that you meant it. I'm pleased that that work is going on. As I said, I only recently visited Chepstow high street, where it seemed to me grossly unfair that, on one street, because of the way business rates work and because of the zoning system, you can have businesses opposite or...
Nick Ramsay: Minister, you are right to say that there are a number of businesses that pay no rates at all. I visited Chepstow high street recently and on one street there, there are a number of businesses that aren't paying rates. Unfortunately, in the same street, there are then businesses that are of a very similar size but may fall into a different zone that find themselves clobbered with really high...
Nick Ramsay: Diolch, Llywydd. Minister, yesterday saw a debate brought to this Chamber on the draft budget. Of course, key to placing the Welsh economy on a better footing is to better support Wales's small businesses. Can you tell us how this draft budget proposes to help the 95 per cent of Welsh businesses that are small and micro, employing, in many cases, under nine people each?
Nick Ramsay: Thanks for taking an intervention, Minister. On that issue of the future generations commissioner, I'm glad to hear that you've said that she has been involved throughout, but there was a slightly wider point than that, and that is, of course, a budget having a strategy devised with the future generations commissioner that underpins it and looks down the line two, three, four, five years. I...
Nick Ramsay: Well, there's a question. Thank you for the question. Gosh; in at the deep end today, isn't it? I don't know that mayor specifically, but I would question what he paid for the airport to start with, did he pay over the odds for it and whether he has a strategy for that airport. I've not been questioning during this, the ownership of the airport, but I am questioning the strategy behind the...
Nick Ramsay: Well, of course I'm not the Minister. I mean, yes, there are gaps in west Wales, but you might want to raise that yourself with the Minister in your own comments. But okay, I take the point—all aspects, all parts of Wales need to be considered equally, and I think the point you're making is that if you set out a preference for one area, such as north Wales, then you automatically lose out...
Nick Ramsay: Yes, I give way to the former First Minister.
Nick Ramsay: I will now, Mike. On 31 December 2019, the airport announced a pre-tax loss of £18.5 million in the financial year up to 31 March 2019. I've previously said that I don't think that the airport should be given what could effectively amount to a blank cheque, so I would be looking for assurances that that isn't going to happen. I give way to Mike Hedges.
