Julie James: —the free flow of information.
Julie James: We continue to invest in healthcare services in Mid and West Wales, including £3 million recently for Withybush General Hospital and £25 million for Glangwili General Hospital. We are also investing £6.6 million in Llandrindod Wells County War Memorial Hospital. We will continue to work with health boards in the region to provide healthcare services that deliver the best possible outcomes...
Julie James: Very much so. Actually, it's in my constituency and I was very sad not to be able to—.
Julie James: I did actually make my best effort to get there, but it wasn't sufficient and, sadly, I missed them, so I was very disappointed. I'm very pleased that you were able to see them there. They're an inspirational group of young women and I absolutely concur with their agenda. Would that we could do it faster.
Julie James: One of the things that we're looking at in terms of the economic action plan, the fair work agenda and our procurement policies is to see what levers we have to ensure that those goals are goals that are striven for in the private sector as well as in the public sector. I do think it's important for us to get our own house in order first, as well, but we are very much hoping, both by soft...
Julie James: Well, it's an interesting thought. I think it has pros and cons that are very well rehearsed and the Llywydd probably won't permit me to take an hour's speech on the pros and cons. But what is essential, of course, is that any Minister with responsibility puts it at front and centre of what they spend their time doing. The reason for the rapid review is to ensure that we haven't missed...
Julie James: Yes, the Member raises a very good point, and, obviously, we want people to be both safe and healthy in their homes, but also to have secure rental arrangements because we know that insecure rental arrangements, particularly for families, contribute to long-term mental and ill health. I know that the Minister for Housing and Regeneration has very much this in mind when we're looking at our...
Julie James: The review, which is being led by myself, will help ensure that gender equality is placed at the heart of Welsh Government policy making and delivery, and that Wales becomes the safest place for women in Europe.
Julie James: Yes. The Member raises an important issue, and as part of the Welsh quality housing standard, of course, making sure that homes meet a standard where accidents are very much minimised is important. There are also a number of schemes for adaptations across Wales, and I'm delighted to say that in my own council, the speed of adaptation has increased out of all recognition from where it was 10...
Julie James: I absolutely agree, poor quality home can have a very significant impact on people's lives, particularly for those from the most disadvantaged communities. Quality standards, including the Welsh housing quality standard for social housing, are critical to helping deliver the Government's wider well-being agenda. The Welsh housing quality standard will ensure that, by 2020, more than 220,000...
Julie James: Integrating housing and health is the platform to effective prevention and early intervention for people with social and health care needs. This is why both housing and social care are priorities in 'Prosperity for All'.
Julie James: Thank you for raising that. We're fully aware of the importance of the A470 strategic corridor. The section around Trago Mills is currently being investigated and appraised to the requirements of the Welsh transport appraisal guidance, known as WelTAG. Studies are on hold at the present time whilst the unsettled traffic patterns and demand return back to average conditions following the...
Julie James: Yes. The Cabinet Secretary is indicating to me that he's more than happy to update Members by way of a statement.
Julie James: I'm afraid I don't have any details of the road that the Member is talking about. I'd be more than happy to make sure that he's written to with the details.
Julie James: Yes, I understand, as you just said, Lynne Neagle, that transport officials are meeting with you after this session to discuss the issue in more detail, and we have received a number of concerns about the new road layout and are working with the local authority and the developer responsible for carrying out the work and its design to address the situation as a matter of urgency. I understand...
Julie James: Our national transport finance plan sets out our commitments for trunk road improvements across Wales, including the south-east.
Julie James: Well, of course, this party has a very different idea of the state's role in people's lives than UKIP does. I'm not entirely certain that it's consistent in UKIP. But, of course, we have a number of things at our disposal that the Government does indeed do. We have done a very large number of things in public health. So, for example, adult smoking prevalence rates fell to 19 per cent ahead of...
Julie James: Of course, the minimum alcohol pricing policy isn't the only policy that we have in place to assist people who suffer from alcohol abuse and substance misuse problems. The leader of UKIP is quite right to say that it can be an issue with austerity that people attempt self-medication and so on, but we're very wedded to making sure that those people have the correct support that they need to be...
Julie James: First of all, on his remarks about the First Minister, which I think were particularly ill-judged, the First Minister is, of course, on an extremely important mission to Doha, coming in on the first Qatar Airways flight to Cardiff Airport, something which we're all immensely proud of. And, Llywydd, I feel obliged to say at this point that when I returned to Wales as part of my professional...
Julie James: We do teach phonics in Welsh schools. I've personally visited schools and watched their phonics tuition, so I'm absolutely well aware that we teach phonics already. I'm sure that more could be done to teach more children phonics. But I do think the statistics that you're quoting are a little misleading because most dyslexic children have additional time and take different exams. So, I'm...
