Rhun ap Iorwerth: This has come as a terrible blow to the island's economy, and I'll say more about that in a moment, but more immediately, of course, to the workforce, and my thoughts are with them today. One told me they'd been informed through a WhatsApp message group. A member of my team has been taking part this afternoon in a meeting of a taskforce set up to help workers, and I'm grateful to Citizens...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: 2. Will the Minister make a statement on the announcement that Orthios has been placed in administration and the impact of that on the 120 local jobs? TQ616
Rhun ap Iorwerth: If I could. In general terms, do you think moving mask wearing from mandation to guidance will make more or fewer people wear a mask?
Rhun ap Iorwerth: To conclude, Llywydd, I understand that Welsh Government has had to make all sorts of political judgments after looking at evidence. In this case, I just think Welsh Government has got its judgment wrong, and that's why we'll be opposing this amended regulation.
Rhun ap Iorwerth: The Minister said this afternoon that we can't keep these regulations in place forever. I agree entirely, and if we were to have this vote in three weeks' time, I'm sure that we would support it. But with people still feeling vulnerable and nervous having to go to a shop or travel by bus or train, why create greater risk for them now? The other safeguard that is being scrapped entirely now is...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Let me quote the First Minister's words from earlier this afternoon, answering a question, actually, about the ambulance service. He said, 'we have some of the highest numbers of people falling ill with the virus of any time in the whole of the pandemic. Only a matter of weeks ago, we managed to reduce the number of people in our hospital beds suffering from coronavirus down to around 700. It...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: There are three sets of regulations in front of us today. The first two extend the current situation, and as we are in a challenging situation at the moment, with very high numbers of cases of COVID, we think that that is a sensible thing to do. We will be supporting those regulations, and I don't think that further comments are needed from me on that. But, for the exact reason that we are...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Another appeal to speed up the visa process. There is a community on Anglesey that is ready to welcome a mother and daughter; the school uniform is ready to go. It is now nine days since the family on Anglesey began going through the visa application process—doing it themselves, rather than leaving it to the mother and daughter, because it's in English only and they don't have good English,...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: I'd like a written statement by the Minister for health in response to concerns that I have in terms of the pace at which the Betsi Cadwaladr health board has responded to enquiries and complaints. There's one case that stands out specifically, relating to an enquiry on behalf of a constituent who suffers from long COVID. We're still waiting for a full response to an enquiry from May 2021...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Nearly three years have passed since Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board had to take direct control of the Longford Road and Cambria surgeries in Holyhead, and, yes, it's been a period of unprecedented challenge for primary care everywhere. But, for nearly three years now, patients at those two surgeries have had to receive a standard of care way below what they should be able to expect....
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Thanks to the success of the vaccination programme, the proportion of people who catch the virus and who become severely ill is relatively lower than it should be, but there is a significant increase, as the First Minister said, in the number of those who are catching the virus at present. I'm hearing about staffing issues in health and care, schools sending children home, one further...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: 4. Will the First Minister make a statement on the development of a new health centre in Holyhead? OQ57829
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Thank you for the motion in front of us today to the Member for Aberconwy. I see value in considering how we could draw together the different elements with regard to planning related to the marine environment, even though, like the Member for Ogmore, I'm not entirely sure that we need to take that further step for legislation. I do think that we need to consider that and see how we can press...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Thank you very much for that idea. Certainly, we do need always to be trying to innovate in the way that we engage with people. The Petitions Committee, of course, is a committee that is driven by that direct engagement with the people of Wales. I know that Jack, in his role as Chair of the Petitions Committee, has been involved in one particularly successful campaign recently, and as a...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Thank you very much for the question. Encouraging engagement with committees is a very important element of the Senedd's engagement work, to ensure, of course, that the public's view is reflected in our discussions. During the pandemic, we reached new audiences through a virtual engagement programme, encompassing online focus groups and other online events, and as we move back to the...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Fast-tracking of skills.
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Thank you very much, Dirprwy Lywydd. As chair of the cross-party group on the digital agenda in Wales, I very much welcome this update by the Deputy Minister today. I look forward too to hearing the update that he intends to give soon on the delivery programme for digital. It's important to put on the record that I'm grateful for the leadership shown by the Deputy Minister in this field. I...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Will you take an intervention?
Rhun ap Iorwerth: If anybody hasn't yet seen the Channel 4 film from last night about the way the Urdd welcomed with open arms the children and families of Afghanistan to the gwersyll opposite this Senedd, I would recommend that you watch it. It made me hugely proud as a Welshman that we provided that welcome. Isn't it the case that our welcome for our Ukrainian friends has to be just as warm?
Rhun ap Iorwerth: HIW tells us that this escalation process ensures that focused and rapid action can be taken by a range of stakeholders to ensure that safe and effective care is being provided. So, let's pause on that word 'safe'. HIW has put this escalation measure in place because the royal college of surgeons report identified a number of concerns that we believe indicate a clear risk to patients using...
