Llyr Gruffydd: Supporting patients to stay at home is an important part of keeping pressures off the NHS, but there are numerous cases. I have a constituent who needs dialysis at home three times a week. That costs £20 a day in terms of energy to run the dialysis machine. The hospital provides £40 every three months. So, clearly, she can't afford it. She's also reliant on a food bank, but she has...
Llyr Gruffydd: 2. What additional pressure is the cost-of-living crisis placing on the NHS in relation to people with complex health conditions living at home? OQ59125
Llyr Gruffydd: King Charles said last week that he was eager to see a percentage of the Crown Estate's profit used for broader public good. Many of us would argue that all of the income of the Crown Estate should be used for the broader public good. It's a policy for many of us to devolve the Crown Estate, and I'd be very pleased to hear what work the Government is currently doing to move that agenda...
Llyr Gruffydd: 3. Will the First Minister make a statement on investment in renewable energy in Wales? OQ59021
Llyr Gruffydd: The Welsh Government can't abdicate responsibility from this. Yes, many of these pressures reach beyond Wales and afflict other parts of the United Kingdom, but nobody can say that the Welsh Government wasn't warned over many years about this ticking time bomb. Nobody can deny, also, that you have options to address this crisis. We can all see that the Government's handling of this so far has...
Llyr Gruffydd: The experiences of the pandemic did perhaps reinforce something that we were all very aware of, namely that the nursing workforce within the health service was suffering in terms of lack of numbers, low pay, and even lower morale. We then of course see ambulance workers going on strike. We are likely to see doctors in Wales following suit by also going on strike, and it's clear that the...
Llyr Gruffydd: Well, thank you very much, Deputy Presiding Officer.
Llyr Gruffydd: Can I thank everybody who has taken part in that very stimulating and very interesting debate? In fact, it was one of the best I've had the privilege of taking part in for a while here. Obviously, time means I can't repeat everything that everybody said, you'll be glad to hear, but I will pick out a few pertinent points. The Minister came back to the roads review right at the end, which was...
Llyr Gruffydd: The second part of our report covers the broader issue, as I was saying, of bus and rail recovery after the COVID pandemic. On behalf of the committee I would particularly like to thank the members of the public who fed into the committee's work through the various focus groups and interviews held across Wales on this issue. The pandemic had a massive impact on the numbers using public...
Llyr Gruffydd: Thank you very much, Dirprwy Lywydd. I'm pleased to be able to open this debate today, and I'd like to start by thanking all the stakeholders and members of the public who contributed to the committee's work. I'm also pleased, of course, that the Minister has accepted all but one of our recommendations, but we'll get to that later This report comes in two parts. Part 1 reflects the...
Llyr Gruffydd: Yes, one thing that isn't implicit in what you just said is that one important measure, according to much of the evidence received by the Economy, Trade and Rural Affairs Committee, which has been scrutinising this Bill, is to what extent this Bill helps to protect family farms. When you have a network of family farms, you withstand the move to larger scale farming—which tends to be more...
Llyr Gruffydd: Yes, thank you very much for that response. Of course, the Minister for health pointed her finger a little at the public with regard to the public's responsibility to be more careful of their health and to do more to exercise and to eat more healthily and so on. I felt that pointing the finger at the public with regard to the NHS's difficulties was rather harsh, but I understand the point she...
Llyr Gruffydd: Well, my concern is Wales of course; I have no jurisdiction for England. But certainly I think we need to be mindful that these individual decisions will consequently lead to, maybe, pressures coming from other directions. Now, linked to this, really, the Welsh Government is introducing legislation and regulation, much of which we support, and they are very worthy in terms of what we want...
Llyr Gruffydd: Diolch yn fawr, Llywydd. And it was very good to share an hour of our time as well to compare notes in relation to the work that we do as the Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee as well.
Llyr Gruffydd: So, thank you for that.
Llyr Gruffydd: Minister, we've heard about concerns about contracting public services, particularly in relation to local government, as a result of the financial situation that our councils find themselves in. Now, one graphic demonstration of that of course was the fact that Newport are actually considering switching off alternate street lights between midnight and 6 a.m. to cut down on energy costs....
Llyr Gruffydd: 3. What discussions has the Minister had with the Minister for Health and Social Services regarding funding local authorities to promote public health? OQ58963
Llyr Gruffydd: 7. How will the Government measure the success of the Agriculture (Wales) Bill 2022? OQ58966
Llyr Gruffydd: Thank you very much, Dirprwy Lywydd. The committee, as you know, has considered all three memoranda for the Bill and has published two reports. The most recent was laid yesterday, and I'm sure that Members have had an opportunity, at short notice, to have a look at that. Before turning to the provisions that are of particular relevance to the committee's remit, and to the matter of consent,...
Llyr Gruffydd: Diolch, Gareth, not only for making us believe, but for proving that we can. Diolch, hefyd, not only for being Welsh, but for taking Cymru with you everywhere around the world. Diolch as well for saying that you had a bad back. Viva Gareth Bale.
