Mike Hedges: There's a long debate to be had over public transport and transport in Wales, but I don't think today is the right time to do it, and I'm sure you don't think that today is the right time to do it. I've got two questions for the Minister. What is the Welsh Government's policy on new roads to land designated in local development plans for housing development? And, in the 1960s, the Llandeilio...
Mike Hedges: Going back to the Silk report on the devolution of taxation, that recommended that aggregates levy should be devolved to Wales. It could not be devolved due to European Union intervention. In November 2022, Liz Saville Roberts asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he had had discussions with the Welsh Government on devolving the aggregates levy to Wales. The Treasury response was that...
Mike Hedges: Can I thank Russ George for giving me a minute in this debate, but, more importantly, thank him for bringing this debate into the Chamber and putting forward a lot of ideas that I fully support? I want to continue the point made by Russ on the economic importance of medical research. Medical research has the advantage of being able to be carried out anywhere; you do not have to be in London...
Mike Hedges: Do you share my concern about the use of dividend income to reduce the amount of tax being paid, and that we don't get any share of the dividend income of people who get paid by dividends in Wales?
Mike Hedges: I think it's always good to discuss taxation, especially when it's being discussed not as part of the budget-setting process. I think if we could perhaps repeat this sort of debate again, well away from the budget, because I think it's got far deeper meaning than this year's budget, and I think that to come back to it in six months' time would be incredibly helpful, either brought here by the...
Mike Hedges: No, I'm not allowed—[Inaudible.] I only asked if the MP for Ynys Môn—
Mike Hedges: The Minister has answered part of what I was going to raise, because the Minister is quite used to me talking about the problem of people having standing charges. I understand from The Observer last Sunday that standing charges can be up to 50p a day. Most of us don't consider having to spend a day without putting on any lights, without putting on any television, without putting on any...
Mike Hedges: I think you've seen just how much of a problem this is for very many of us representing constituencies. As the Minister is aware, I have two high-rise developments in Swansea East, Altamar and South Quay. In fact, the Minister might drive past them on her way in some mornings. There is serious concern being expressed to me by the residents in those blocks. In Altamar, they're concerned that...
Mike Hedges: Yes.
Mike Hedges: I will be voting for this budget, despite having very serious concerns about it. If the Senedd was unable to set a budget, there's no shortage of members of the Westminster Government who would be only too happy to say, 'Devolution does not work. We can set the budget for them because they're incapable of doing it themselves.' On raising income tax, as suggested by Plaid Cymru, while...
Mike Hedges: I was going to say it's based upon the standard spending assessment, the rates support grant, taking into account the ability of councils to raise money. Would you have to also change the standard spending assessment in order to change the rates support grant?
Mike Hedges: Will you take an intervention, Peter?
Mike Hedges: I welcome the statement today and the Welsh Government's support for the LGBTQ+ community. I welcome the commitment to making Wales the most LGBTQ+ friendly nation in Europe. I fully support the vision to improves the lives and outcomes for LGBTQ+ people. I remember section 28. When I was teaching in a college, a student told me that he could bully someone who was gay and, if I tried to stop...
Mike Hedges: We have to move away from piecemeal devolution, with Plaid Cymru believing we can salami-slice to independence, the Conservatives that we can stop it going any further, and many looking to move devolution backwards. An example is policing: devolved to Scotland, Northern Ireland, Manchester and London, but not to Wales. We have directly elected mayors in England; in fact, Bristol has a...
Mike Hedges: We cannot overestimate the importance of lottery funding to individuals. For the major team sports, such as football and rugby, player development is carried out by amateur and professional clubs, with professional football clubs having academies. Where support is needed is for younger players in sports such as tennis; players who need to travel to national and international tournaments and...
Mike Hedges: Carrying on the energy theme, I'm requesting a Government statement on progress being made by the Welsh Government on ending standing charges on days when no energy is used. When people have their first hot meal for days, which is likely to be a tin of soup, and find they have used up to a quarter of their energy credit, to me this is fundamentally wrong. I would add the word 'cruel' as well....
Mike Hedges: The census is a very poor measure of the number of Welsh speakers. Of course, in the early censuses, the question was ‘Welsh, English or both’. It is self-choosing. Parents also make a decision on behalf of their children, so it’s not an accurate method of collecting information. I speak Welsh every day, but rarely in debates, and I only speak to people I am confident will not try and...
Mike Hedges: I'm not confident speaking Welsh.
Mike Hedges: I ticked the ‘speak Welsh’ box, but could have ticked the ‘do not speak Welsh’ box. Does the Minister agree with me that, in future censuses, after ‘Do you speak Welsh?’, you should have a question of, ‘How often? Is it daily, more than once a week or more than once a month?' I await the additional data that will identify the areas where most people speak Welsh. Where over three...
Mike Hedges: I'm asking for a Government statement on basic farm payments. I'm asking for a statement providing an update on the provision of basic farm payments and explaining why the Welsh Government is opposed to the Farmers Union of Wales proposal to cap basic farm payments. I'm also asking for a statement to provide an update on proposals regarding the remediation of cladding on buildings. I have a...
