Mark Isherwood: I move.
Mark Isherwood: It's moved.
Mark Isherwood: I'm perplexed by the Minister's position, which I believe would actually diminish the democratic rights of the full electorate. There are alternative ways to vote, which are also addressed under parts of this Bill, and which pre-exist this Bill. To introduce this new precedent at this point would not achieve the goals identified by the Minister, and we believe, to the contrary, could actually...
Mark Isherwood: Do I not respond?
Mark Isherwood: Don't worry, you've had a very long two days, after all.
Mark Isherwood: Diolch, Llywydd, and I move amendment 8 in my name. This amendment simply leaves out section 6 in order to prevent multiple-day voting. As I said yesterday, we recognise the need for voting to take place on a single day and not be spread out over multiple days. An election held over multiple days raises security concerns over the integrity of the election. As I said, where will ballot boxes...
Mark Isherwood: It is moved.
Mark Isherwood: Move.
Mark Isherwood: It is an objection. I thought you would unmute me, but object.
Mark Isherwood: I know the Minister believes that if there is to be a delayed election it would be preferably held in the summer months rather than in the winter, because she's also told me that consistently beforehand. It is intellectually unsustainable to then enable the possibility, or provide for the possibility, of having that very election in the winter. Our position is sustainable, our position...
Mark Isherwood: I move amendments 5, 9, 10, 11, 12 and 13. These specify 26 August as the latest date until when an election can be delayed. As I said yesterday during Stage 2 proceedings, a six-month delay to the scheduled election on 6 May is too long. The National Assembly for Wales usually sat for four-year terms and the Senedd sits for five. A delay until bonfire night would take us halfway through a...
Mark Isherwood: We will be supporting amendments 3 and 4, but we're not able to support Plaid Cymru's amendment 16. It would seem very bizarre to compel the First Minister to explain his reasons for not doing something. This is completely without precedent and not something I believe that anyone, as I said yesterday in a different context, is intentionally calling for. If you believe the election should go...
Mark Isherwood: Thank you. When the Welsh Government first advised schools to close in response to the COVID-19 outbreak, it stated that this was with the exception of making provision for children who are vulnerable, or whose parents are critical to the COVID-19 response. Welsh Government guidance states that vulnerable children includes those with care and support or support plans and those with statements...
Mark Isherwood: I urge you to look at those essential services being provided by the sector, without which everyone in Government's job would be harder, but also our job in opposition would be harder, and everybody's lives would be a lot harder also. One of those, of course, is hospices. Although the Welsh Government initially allocated £6.3 million to the hospice emergency fund, this was less generous than...
Mark Isherwood: I'd be happy to provide you with a copy of that report if you don't have it, because it shows that they are aware of the existing funding streams and have accessed them where they've been able to. Responding to the Finance Committee's consultation on the Welsh Government's draft budget proposals, the Wales Council for Voluntary Action said: 'The voluntary sector must be supported and...
Mark Isherwood: The Scottish Government have announced they're providing grants for Scottish hostels and bunkhouses with a £2.3 million hostel support fund. Several operators of rural bunkhouse and outdoor alternative businesses in north Wales have written to me calling for a Welsh hostel and bunkhouse support fund from the Welsh Government, equivalent to this. As they said, 'We provide a service to our...
Mark Isherwood: 1. What support is the Welsh Government providing for autistic pupils in school settings in Wales? OQ56257
Mark Isherwood: What financial provision will the Welsh Government make within its annual budget to support the hospitality sector?
Mark Isherwood: Diolch, Llywydd. Our amendment calls for this Senedd to acknowledge that the Welsh Government's draft budget for 2021-22 does not enable Wales to build back better and recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. The term 'build back better' recognises the need for a growth strategy in the wake of coronavirus that delivers jobs, skills and infrastructure in every corner of Wales and tackles the great...
Mark Isherwood: Many then potential vaccinators, including nurses and GPs, contacted me at the beginning of the roll-out, frustrated at the slow start then, but they've observed huge praise for that magnificent way they've risen to the challenge since. You referred to second vaccines. I think the latest figures in Wales are one in every 909 people; in England it's one in every 119 people. So, there's still...
