Rebecca Evans: ...priorities for the next three years are set out within the final budget, published in March this year. This has resulted in a number of investments in mid and west Wales, for example, in health, education and transport, alongside our longer term commitment of £55 million to the mid Wales growth fund.
Rebecca Evans: ...to deliver public value for public money. Having less say over less money means that there will be difficult decisions to make for the Welsh Government and other institutions across business, education and the third sector, and we've heard about some of those difficult decisions this afternoon. Vital programmes delivered with support from EU funds, at a time when we're recovering from the...
Rebecca Evans: ...each other at precisely the time when we're trying to encourage collaboration and working together. But it's not even just local authorities, of course; previously, you would have had higher education, further education, the private sector, the third sector, all benefiting significantly from EU funding. But now, in terms of making local authorities administrators in the SPF, that's...
Rebecca Evans: ...those individuals to access their right to vote. And we've also worked to increase the availability of resources and opportunities for teachers so that they're able to engage with learners in schools through the work of the Association for Citizenship Teaching, and also the Politics Project, which I was really privileged to be involved with and had the opportunity to speak to first-time...
Rebecca Evans: ...day. In Bridgend, the polling stations in certain low-turnout wards were open for advanced voting during the week leading up to polling day, and a new, advanced voting centre was created in a school for registered students at that school. And then in Caerphilly, which was the example referred to, the council offices at Ystrad Mynach were used as an advance voting centre for all residents...
Rebecca Evans: ...foundational economy. And it's certainly a model that we did explore in terms of those anchor institutions—the role that the NHS has to play, the role that local authorities have to play, higher education institutions. All of those institutions that aren't going anywhere have a really important role to play in terms of the foundational economy work. And that's something that we have...
Rebecca Evans: I held a round-table meeting with the Minister for Economy, Minister for Climate Change and the Minister for Education and the Welsh Language on 7 February to discuss the outcome of the consultation on local taxes for second homes and self-catering accommodation.
Rebecca Evans: ...programme for government commitments. These include: £70 million to support local authorities' capital programme costs; over £65 million for city and growth deals; £50 million provided to help schools carry out capital repairs and improvement work; and over £19 million to help meet the costs in dealing with the recovery from the impacts of the flooding in February 2020. We have of...
Rebecca Evans: ..., across Wales, nearly £300 million for sustainable communities for learning, £10 million for net-zero fund, and nearly £20 million for Welsh medium. And I think those reflect our priorities of education and climate change, which are shared priorities. But, as I referred to, much of Anglesey's capital spend has been supported by Welsh Government funding, and obviously, we would be...
Rebecca Evans: ...the Conservatives last laid their alternative budget and they had their fingers so burned they haven't done it since, and that was because they showed that they were going to make massive cuts to education. I think it was 2014 when the Conservatives did provide an alternative budget. [Interruption.] It was 2010—okay, I've been corrected. So, it's a long time since the Conservative...
Rebecca Evans: ...households to help maximise their incomes to help meet the rising household costs. And £28.4 million is being provided to address holiday hunger, comprising £21.4 million to extend free-school-meal provision over the Easter, Whitsun and summer holidays, and a further £7 million for the Summer of Fun programme, providing access to free activities for children and young people during...
Rebecca Evans: .... I am pleased to open the debate on our 2022-23 final budget—a three-year budget that has used every lever to strengthen public services, to tackle the climate and nature emergencies, to improve educational opportunities, and to respond to the ongoing cost-of-living crisis. Yet again, we have felt an incredibly different set of circumstances, and I want to begin by thanking all of those...
Rebecca Evans: ...in public transport, town centres and digital infrastructure. This budget also aims to deliver a fairer Wales, and our investment of an additional £60 million in childcare, almost £65 million in education recovery and reform, and £90 million in free school meals, on top of already significant investments in this area, shows our commitment to ensuring that no-one is left behind. Also, in...
Rebecca Evans: ...I will say, in respect of the budget for the period ahead, we have allocated an additional £100 million in respect of mental health, and some of that will be very much looking to bolster our whole-school approach to ensure that children and young people do get the support they need at the earliest point. So, mental health is a major priority for this Government, and you will see it...
Rebecca Evans: ...England. So, there are almost twice as many roads for us to maintain per head of population here in Wales than in England. And obviously, our dispersed population means higher costs in respect of education and other services. So, I just wanted to give that as an example as to why the funding formula works as it does. I think that communities across Wales benefit as a result of what was...
Rebecca Evans: ...'ve done to retain the EMA, and also very proud of the work that we're doing jointly with Plaid Cymru in respect of many items in the co-operation agreement relating to poverty, not least our free-school-meal pledge, which will invest an additional £90 million up to 2024-25 to deliver this commitment in stages, as local authorities are able to expand their work in this particular area....
Rebecca Evans: ...we are very much working with a range of stakeholders to understand the requirements and the opportunities, now, which have been provided by the co-operation agreement measure in respect of free school meals for all children. I think that there is significant opportunity there. And then we're also working with Caerphilly council, who lead the Welsh public sector food frameworks programme,...
Rebecca Evans: ..., to tackle the problems and the challenges of the pandemic, and I think did a really excellent job, also, working closely, for example, with the WLGA to make face coverings available to all Welsh schools. Early on, we worked with a Welsh manufacturer to deliver high-quality, reusable and accredited face coverings, which were then delivered to schools. As well as promoting safer working...
Rebecca Evans: ...over £2.2 billion of support for ratepayers through our reliefs and our grant schemes, which I'm really pleased we've been able to do. I'll just address a final couple of other areas, one being education and early years. Clearly, investing in early years and education is one of the most powerful levers that we have to tackle inequality, to embed prevention and to invest in our future...
Rebecca Evans: ...discretionary assistance fund for additional support. We will invest an additional £7 million to meet this ongoing demand, providing support for those most in need. Investing in early years and education remains one of our most powerful levers. We're investing an additional £320 million in our long-term education reforms, ensuring educational inequalities narrow and standards rise. This...
