Carolyn Thomas: Thank you to Cefin for giving me a minute of his time. Community facilities are places of immeasurable friendship, kindness and confidence building that cannot be measured by GDP. They are community halls, pubs and playing fields. They are areas that should be protected for people and nature. Rhyl rugby club is an exemplar grass-roots facility, not only providing a place for hundreds of young...
Carolyn Thomas: I recently visited Glyndŵr University in Wrexham, which has expanded to now offer nursing and a variety of allied health degrees, plus retraining, in fantastic new spaces with the latest technology. The bursary in Wales for training also makes a huge difference. Nursing and other staff get such a hard time and morale is low, so we need to promote nursing and health as a career, and we need...
Carolyn Thomas: I'd like to thank the Local Government and Housing Committee staff and the Senedd's community liaison team for their work producing the report, organising evidence sessions and visits to engage directly with the community—that was really valuable—and also Travelling Ahead, who came with us as well. We discovered there aren't enough sites and there are long waiting lists for local...
Carolyn Thomas: Minister, on top of hearing that the modest additional funding for social care and schools will not cover the funding gap, capital funding continues to be cut as well, and there's no consequential for the high speed 2 line for our railway infrastructure, which is concerning. The UK Government also had an opportunity to invest in public services, to grow the economy that way, by investing in...
Carolyn Thomas: Trefnydd, I recently visited the new health education innovation centre at Wrexham Glyndŵr University, where they have now expanded to offer nursing and allied health degrees. This opens up a world of opportunities for students to become nurses, paramedics, physiotherapists, speech therapists—it's fantastic, the offer now—and also for existing health employees to retrain and reskill with...
Carolyn Thomas: I'd like to pay tribute to Jan Thomas, chief executive of the Flintshire Disability Forum, and TCC, Together Creating Communities, for campaigning for more Changing Places facilities across north-east Wales. They lobbied me when I was a Flintshire county councillor and, since then, I have questioned if a Changing Places toilet can be incorporated in a new public building or during the...
Carolyn Thomas: The cost-of-living crisis is 12 years in the making, exacerbated by Brexit, the war in Ukraine and the Tory UK Government's policies, cutting public service funding, pushing productivity to an unrealistic limit and slashing social security payments. I would like to welcome recommendations 8 and 9 of this report. Having to apply for benefits and grants is confusing and messy. Residents hear...
Carolyn Thomas: Urgent action is needed to ensure that no community, no business and no household is left behind to prevent inequality. A Women's Institute survey found that over 50 per cent of respondents from a rural area did not feel that their internet was fast and reliable, and 66 per cent stated that they or their household had been impacted by poor broadband. They had difficulties in obtaining...
Carolyn Thomas: What support does the Welsh Government provide to help people into public sector careers?
Carolyn Thomas: Thank you for the answer, Counsel General. I know you agree that this bonfire of the EU retained law started by Rees-Mogg is an extremely dangerous one. Not only does it put at risk important protections, including workers' rights and climate measures, it's also a blatant attempt to undermine devolution, Welsh Government and this Senedd. Given that this Bill will have serious implications for...
Carolyn Thomas: Thank you for that, Minister. Before being elected as a Member of the Senedd, I was a postal worker for Royal Mail, and I know how hard deliverers work day in, day out. I walked an average of 12 miles a day for five or six hours, in all weather—extreme heat, storms, snow—and my ex-colleagues have embraced change already to increase productivity and efficiency, being more flexible...
Carolyn Thomas: 9. What discussions has the Welsh Government had regarding the pay and conditions of Royal Mail workers in Wales? OQ58677
Carolyn Thomas: 3. What discussions has the Counsel General had with other law officers about the timetable for the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill? OQ58676
Carolyn Thomas: I've been to three cost-of-living seminars in north Wales recently, and communication of what benefits people are entitled to was the biggest issue. There have been a variety of suggestions: an online grant checker, printing the CAB advice number on prescription bags from the pharmacy, having community advisers who get to know those hard to reach in the community and a single-point-of-access...
Carolyn Thomas: —he has said to me that the Welsh Government, though, does provide PDG funding, so they do use that money to enable those who are on free school meals to visit education centres at the moment. So, if the Minister could let me know if that funding is being cut, because it is essential. As I said, schools do not have the resources. Now is not the time for this. The UK Government, the Tory...
Carolyn Thomas: I must say that this proposal does have laudable aims, and thanks, Sam, for bringing this forward for a discussion. I think trying and learning new skills in our wonderful outdoor environment of independence, bonding with others in a day at camp or an outdoor activity are ones you do remember, and it's great for physical and mental health and well-being. I don't remember going to one with...
Carolyn Thomas: I've got a few suggestions as well from residents. Some of them have probably already been covered, if that's okay. As I said before, Britannia is a permanent bottleneck and there are two carriageways on the bridge, but there's also space for another lane, which has been discussed in the past and was raised earlier. So, would the Minister request an urgent re-evaluation of the third central...
Carolyn Thomas: Can I just declare an interest? I'm a member of the North Wales Wildlife Trust. Thank you. I attended the wildlife trust annual general meeting on Saturday. They do great work with landowners regarding managing them for nature, and the chief executive officer spoke of significant concerns about UK Government policies weakening environmental protections on leaving the EU, and also deregulation...
Carolyn Thomas: I'm pleased to see that the lack of grid capacity has been recognised in recommendation 6 and 7. It's the biggest barrier to the uptake of renewables within north Wales. There's no shortage of households that wish to have renewable energy, such as solar PV and air-source heat pumps, but getting to the grid—the distribution network operator installing it—is causing so many issues. I've...
Carolyn Thomas: Will you take an intervention?
