Dawn Bowden: Diolch, Llywydd. Last Friday, it was my great pleasure to join the community of Bedlinog, in my constituency, as they celebrated the opening of their community library. I've sat in this Chamber too often hearing about the loss of local services in so many communities in Wales, as we are unable to avoid the impact and the consequences of pressures caused by austerity and budget cuts. But,...
Dawn Bowden: I do care, Rhun, and they are involved, all the time.
Dawn Bowden: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. Can I thank Julie for giving me a minute of her time in this debate on a really very important issue? Now, Assembly colleagues will be aware that, for some time, I've been raising the profile of the so-called 'sex for rent' problem that can face some of the most vulnerable people who are seeking to find a home. Indeed, the recent broadcast by the reporters...
Dawn Bowden: Cabinet Secretary, considering the well-being objectives, can I ask you what consideration, if any, you've given to initiatives that we've seen in France and more recently in Scotland to control the use of mobile phones in schools as a way of helping to combat both school bullying and disruption to learning?
Dawn Bowden: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer, and I will try to keep it brief, but I do have a couple of points I want to make. Firstly, can I thank you for your statement and the positive actions that, clearly, the Welsh Government have been carrying out already? And can I say in particular that today was absolutely fantastic when we saw the unveiling of the purple plaque for Val Feld, and that...
Dawn Bowden: Like others, Cabinet Secretary, can I also join you in thanking the health and social services staff, emergency responders, public service workers and volunteers, of course, in the efforts that they've shown over this winter and especially over the last few days? In my former role—I may have mentioned this once or twice—I was a trade union official, and I did represent NHS staff. It's...
Dawn Bowden: I think most of us Valleys AMs, Cabinet Secretary, are very supportive of the strategic hub—I was trying to think of the words there—in the plan. I think identifying opportunities to invest in the social and economic conditions in communities like the upper Rhymney valley and in your own constituency of Blaenau Gwent forms an important consideration of the public sector partners on the...
Dawn Bowden: I don't know whether they recycle plastic pellets to make heating, but if they could put them into the system here and warm the Chamber up, that would be great. Minister, I'm sorry I missed you in Merthyr yesterday. I wanted to welcome your announcement, particularly the nearly £1.3 million that you've announced to invest in specialist machinery equipment in Merthyr, including a...
Dawn Bowden: Can I thank you, Cabinet Secretary, for your statement? The consultation on services fit for the future was very wide-ranging, and it covered significant areas of governance and, as you say, sits alongside the parliamentary review looking at how we ensure that services are delivered in the right places by the right teams of people. From the responses that were received, it's clear that there...
Dawn Bowden: For my contribution, I just want to really make some general observations on the issues around isolation and loneliness, rather than focusing on any of the specific recommendations, because it's a huge irony, isn't it, in the days of the internet, of knowing that people can FaceTime each other from four corners of the globe, that on our very doorsteps, here in our communities, we find the...
Dawn Bowden: I think I would be agreeing with virtually all the comments that have already been made this afternoon. There was a great deal of consensus in the committee, and we heard some very powerful evidence from a number of organisations and bodies that led us to our report and the recommendations in it.
Dawn Bowden: Thank you, Cabinet Secretary. Perhaps I should more usefully have asked about the internal workings of the UK Government, because as far as I can see they can't agree amongst themselves at the moment on the nature of our future relationship with the EU, so it's really hard to see how they can talk sensibly to the devolved nations about it. We've heard several times, Cabinet Secretary, that...
Dawn Bowden: 2. Will the Cabinet Secretary provide an update on recent intergovernmental discussions about Wales's future relationship with the EU? OAQ51758
Dawn Bowden: Can I thank the leader of the house for her statement, which, I was pleased to note, acknowledges the sacrifices of those who went before us and those who spoke up for women's right to vote, and, indeed, women's right to stand for election? In the case of the Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney constituency, it's a matter of pride to me that such support came from Keir Hardie, who was their MP at the...
Dawn Bowden: Leader of the house, you'll recall that last year I tabled a Member's legislative motion aimed at outlawing here in Wales the shameful practice known as sex for rent. This evening, the tv series Ein Byd will be showing shocking footage about the alarming sex-for-rent problem now facing some young people in our communities, and I believe the programme will reveal the true nature of the problem...
Dawn Bowden: Can I also join others in thanking Russell George and the committee for this report? The report certainly highlights a number of very important issues about the need to focus on delivering improved outcomes for our communities from the deals, and to avoid the burden of bureaucracy that runs throughout that report. And that's never easy because, for example, since this particular scrutiny work...
Dawn Bowden: Leader of the house, last week, the Cabinet Secretary for Finance gave a response to the urgent question regarding the collapse of Carillion. Many Members in this Chamber would echo the passionate way in which the Cabinet Secretary highlighted the weakness in the UK Government procurement policy that has contributed to the current mess that the public sector now, largely, has to deal with....
Dawn Bowden: As a member of the committee, I largely welcome the response of the Welsh Government to the report as we continue to develop and strengthen the primary care clusters in the years ahead. My overriding impression from the evidence we took in this inquiry is that, for many, it was too soon to take an informed decision or an informed view on the overall success of the clusters. So, I do think...
Dawn Bowden: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. The fine Gothic former synagogue in Merthyr Tydfil had served the Jewish community there since the 1870s. The Jewish community at Merthyr reached its peak in the 1930s, but having now largely disappeared from the town, there are still signs of their presence, including the Jewish cemetery in Cefn Coed. In 1955, there was held, and I quote, 'an impressive...
Dawn Bowden: Thank you for those answers, Minister. Can you agree that, obviously, the best way to reduce plastic packaging is to reduce it at its source? Obviously, we're very encouraged to hear about Iceland's intentions to stop using plastic packaging in their goods within five years. With that in mind, I just wondered whether you've held any discussions with businesses in Wales to seek an end to the...
