John Griffiths: Thanks for that, Cabinet Secretary. Marley Nicholls is a six-year-old boy in Newport East. He has a rare blood condition, aplastic anaemia, where his bone marrow and stem cells do not produce enough blood cells. He needs a bone marrow transplant, but nobody in his family is a match, and, indeed, nobody on the worldwide register is a suitable match either. So, they've launched a campaign to...
John Griffiths: 9. What steps is the Welsh Government taking to encourage people to register as bone-marrow donors to support those who are in need of a bone-marrow transplant? OAQ52587
John Griffiths: The severity of a collision follows from the laws of physics. At higher speeds, the kinetic energy released in a crash increases, as does the trauma experienced by those struck by, or occupying, the vehicles involved. The increase in crash risk is explained by the fact that when speed increases, the time to react to changes in the environment is shorter and manoeuvrability is reduced....
John Griffiths: I'd like to use this short debate today to discuss the benefits of introducing default 20-mph speed limits in inner urban areas and why I believe this should be a Welsh Government policy for the whole of Wales. Twenty miles per hour would apply across the country in built-up, residential areas where people live. Local authorities would be able to exempt roads if local circumstances warranted....
John Griffiths: Diolch Llywydd. I have given a minute each to Joyce Watson, Mike Hedges and David Melding.
John Griffiths: Well I think, as ever, Gareth, that those are very complex matters that you can't simplistically solve by saying that we should have less inward migration to the UK and Wales. You know, we've been in an age of austerity now, sadly, for something like 10 years. It's a deliberate policy choice by the UK Government and it has led to wage stagnation as well as having many other, I would argue,...
John Griffiths: I'd like to thank all the Members who've contributed to the debate today and, obviously, the Cabinet Secretary, Llywydd. I think we've seen some common themes amongst some of the points raised—for example, the recommendation to have a tackling poverty strategy and its importance was raised by both Siân and Gareth, and I raised it in my opening remarks. As I said then, this is a matter that...
John Griffiths: Closely linked to this are our continuing concerns that the lack of a dedicated tackling poverty strategy will hamper the Welsh Government’s intentions to deliver prosperity for all. Recommendation 1 in this report is a repeat of our recommendation from our Communities First report, calling for such a strategy. Reflecting on the evidence we heard throughout the course of this inquiry, we...
John Griffiths: Diolch, Llywydd. I’m very pleased to open today’s debate on our committee report. I would like to start by thanking all those who contributed to our inquiry, either by giving written or oral evidence, but in particular those people who participated in our focus groups. Hearing from them about the challenges of insecure work, low pay and accessing the welfare system really focused our...
John Griffiths: Cabinet Secretary, we are lucky to live in a diverse Wales with many different ethnic minorities. There are, of course, issues of inequality amongst those communities and also with regard to the protected characteristics, and there is rightly a strong focus on those, but I believe social class is also a very important aspect of inequality in Wales and it actually cuts across the protected...
John Griffiths: Cabinet Secretary, I do understand that it's incredibly difficult to allocate funding in this age of austerity and all the pressures that involves. Nonetheless, I do believe that education should have a bigger share of the Welsh Government's budget than is currently the case. I believe that would be very much in line with the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015, because greater...
John Griffiths: 5. What level of priority is given to the education portfolio in deciding Welsh Government spending commitments? OAQ52531
John Griffiths: 7. What progress is being made in achieving the Welsh Government's policy objectives for greater equality in Wales? OAQ52532
John Griffiths: What strategy will the Welsh Government follow to improve community safety in Wales?
John Griffiths: I wanted to also mention some examples of the difficulties that homeowners are facing in Wales, because in my own constituency of Newport East I recently met with a delegation from a prestige riverside housing development, where there are 81 leaseholders who, shortly after purchasing, found that their ground rents would double every 10 years, which wasn't brought to their attention when they...
John Griffiths: Cabinet Secretary, the Welsh Government smoking ban has helped reduce smoking, but it remains the leading cause of serious illness and avoidable early deaths in Wales, responsible, according to Action on Smoking and Health, for around 5,500 deaths every year, and the Welsh Government's target of reducing smoking prevalence to 16 per cent by 2020 will not be achieved on current projections....
John Griffiths: 3. What further steps will the Welsh Government take to reduce levels of smoking? OAQ52406
John Griffiths: Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd. I do very much agree that it is a test of our new democracy here in Wales how we counter the discrimination and prejudice that Gypsy, Traveller and Roma communities face, and I guess many of us who are familiar with issues around proposed local sites in our constituencies will understand the level of suspicion and, unfortunately, ignorance that often exists. And I just...
John Griffiths: It is very difficult to understand, really, how we got from that meeting here with Charles Hendry some time ago now, where there was such positive cross-party support for the tidal lagoon in Swansea bay and tidal lagoons further afield in Wales. In fact, I can remember Charles Hendry saying how struck he was by the strength and depth of that cross-party support, and yet here we are today with...
John Griffiths: Llywydd, I very much welcome this debate today as well, which is very, very important for health in Wales and quality of life in Wales, and there are practical things that can be done. One thing I've mentioned previously, for example, is the possibility of having LPG conversions for taxi fleets, which would be one important and significant contribution to improving air quality in our...
