Mark Isherwood: I'll have one intervention.
Mark Isherwood: Yes, and policing must reflect demographic, geographic and historic reality and where crime actually happens and how it moves, not the aspirations or otherwise of certain politicians. The work of the Assembly's sub-committee considering the then proposed Welsh police merger, of which I was a member, led to police mergers being aborted across England and Wales. As I said in the February 2006...
Mark Isherwood: In their evidence to the Thomas Commission on Justice in Wales, the Police Federation of England and Wales stated: 'we had concluded to The Silk Commission that "policing could be devolved" the question of whether or not is "should be devolved" is of course a political issue and decision.' They reiterated their neutral and evidence-led stance in their briefing for this debate. In their...
Mark Isherwood: In a written response to me from the Minister for Climate Change six weeks ago, she said, 'Longer term, the Sustainable Farming Scheme will be an important mechanism and source of funding to address habitat loss and species decline, including some of our iconic farmland birds such as the curlew. Representations from the Gylfinir Cymru Partnership will be considered by the Minister for Rural...
Mark Isherwood: Although local government revenue funding for 2022-23 will increase by 9.4 per cent, there's an element of robbing Peter to pay Paul here, with local authority general capital funding across Wales, and in Anglesey, down 16 per cent. Further, although prosperity levels per head in Anglesey are the lowest in Wales, at just under half those in Cardiff, and Anglesey is amongst the five local...
Mark Isherwood: 5. What role will the sustainable farming scheme play in species recovery? OQ57743
Mark Isherwood: I've been contacted by a constituent stating, 'My husband had his first COVID vaccination in Scotland, second in Wales and booster in England.' This year, he's had two letters with appointments for a vaccination. After he pursued the first, he was told, 'Unfortunately, we aren't authorised to record vaccinations given outside north Wales as it's outside our jurisdiction. Having checked the...
Mark Isherwood: As I've repeatedly stated here since the UK Localism Act 2011, the Welsh Government has proven strangely averse to implementing its community rights agenda. And although the well-being objectives in the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015 include people contributing to their community, being informed, included and listened to, too often this hasn't happened because it's not been...
Mark Isherwood: 3. What is the Welsh Government policy regarding community empowerment? OQ57740
Mark Isherwood: Diolch, Llywydd. That's caught me out a little bit. At the risk of repeating some elements, I'll go forward. But speaking here in January, I challenged the Deputy Minister for Mental Health and Well-being over actions to ensure faster and equitable progress in improving eating disorder services across Wales. I highlighted findings in eating disorder charity Beat's 'The Welsh Eating Disorder...
Mark Isherwood: The prospectus issued in 2016 by the Growth Track 360 partnership—a cross-border alliance of business, political and public sector leaders, including the North Wales Economic Ambition Board and the Mersey Dee Alliance—stated that being able to link into HS2 would reduce congestion, improve business logistics and attract investment and jobs. And in January, the Growth Track 360 partnership...
Mark Isherwood: How is the Welsh Government supporting pupils with additional learning needs?
Mark Isherwood: Thank you. I had hoped to make a two or three-minute contribution. Obviously, I haven't got time for that, but do you acknowledge—? You refer to the defeat in the House of Lords, and some of the measures that the Lords rejected cannot now be featured in the final legislation. Do you recognise that these include one of the most high-profile proposals, which would have made it illegal for...
Mark Isherwood: Russia is a magnificent country with wonderful people, abominably led into disastrous actions with terrible consequences. But, following the theme of much of the questioning, further to confirmation by the UK Government yesterday that up to 100,000 Ukrainian refugees are already eligible to come to the UK after measures announced in recent weeks giving British nationals and any persons...
Mark Isherwood: The Welsh Government has committed to the World Health Organization target to eliminate hepatitis C as a significant public health threat by 2030 at the latest. However, in other countries of the UK, Governments have set pathways to accelerate the elimination target date ahead of 2030. In England and Northern Ireland it's 2025, and in Scotland, 2024. So, can the Minister confirm that the...
Mark Isherwood: Would you recognise, in terms of the extra officers, that the promised number is on track to be met by 2023, that Wales has had its full share of that, and that where police forces place those officers is an operational matter for those forces?
Mark Isherwood: As we've heard, funding for the four Welsh police forces is delivered through a three-way arrangement involving Home Office, Welsh Government and council tax, with the Home Office operating a common needs-based formula to distribute funding across Welsh and English police forces, and a Welsh Government component based on consistency across Wales and England. Police budget cuts to 2014 were...
Mark Isherwood: I was contacted by many concerned north Wales constituents running legitimate self-catering accommodation businesses regarding the Welsh Government's business support grant, launched following the introduction of alert level 2 restrictions in December. For example, one stated, 'Our farm cottages sleep 22 in a courtyard. The grant is only available to self-catering properties for 30 or more...
Mark Isherwood: 6. How is the Welsh Government supporting the hospitality sector during the pandemic? OQ57638
Mark Isherwood: Diolch. I've been busy scribbling notes. I thank everyone for their contribution and the Minister for her response. The Minister told us that she had listened very carefully, doing lots of work because it's all very complex, but, as Russell George pointed out, there's no targeting, no vision. Twenty expert charities are also calling for a cancer strategy. At least the Minister accepted,...
