Rhianon Passmore: Thank you very much. In regard to the use of foreign aid, there are issues in terms of the way some countries are using it. This is acknowledged and this should be being correctly policed, but that absolutely does not undermine the purposes of foreign aid, and you’ve mentioned Boko Haram. Would you agree that 0.7 per cent of GDP is appropriate and that all Scandinavian countries spend far...
Rhianon Passmore: Will you take an intervention?
Rhianon Passmore: Will you take an intervention?
Rhianon Passmore: Okay; Lee will go second. In regard to investment in infrastructure, would you agree that the Welsh Government initiatives in terms of infrastructural investment around the metro will make a considerable impact? And also in regard to the austerity programme, in regard to the huge impact that that has had on Valley communities, that this is a lever that we really, really need to be working...
Rhianon Passmore: Diolch, Llywydd. Cabinet Secretary, I am rising today to welcome this statement on education leadership. Wales has a proud heritage of high-quality teachers and school leadership. However, the announcement of the establishment of the current shadow academy board last November was widely welcomed. It is indeed heartening to hear that the shadow board has made a proficient start, and I welcome...
Rhianon Passmore: Will the First Minister outline the Welsh Government initiatives that aim to increase the number of nurses educated in Wales?
Rhianon Passmore: Thank you. Diolch. The headteacher of Islwyn High School, Tim Williams, has just recently been handed the keys to the £25.5 million-worth of new Islwyn High, built on the site of the former Oakdale colliery. The school has impressive features, modern teaching spaces, state-of-the-art technology workshops, fit-for-purpose science labs and IT suites, spread across three floors. Cabinet...
Rhianon Passmore: 7. Will the Cabinet Secretary make a statement on the investment the Welsh Government is making in school buildings in Islwyn? OAQ(5)0119(EDU)
Rhianon Passmore: Will the First Minister outline what actions the Welsh Government is taking to protect Wales's unique landscape?
Rhianon Passmore: I do rise in this debate to speak on one particular matter, but an important one that has been referenced by others. The UKIP motion states, and I quote, that ‘mature woodland should not be cut down to build solar farms’ and I for one am very pleased that this time they have discovered an environmental mandate and an eco-soul. I welcome that. But, Llywydd, it is self-evident, as UKIP...
Rhianon Passmore: Thank you very much. Just a small intervention, I think: in regard to the apparent conflict and confusion that there is on your policy around decarbonisation, can you clarify if UKIP is in favour of fracking and if that is your party policy in Wales?
Rhianon Passmore: Since I’ve been elected to the National Assembly for Wales, I’ve been heartened to see the increased appreciation from this place of the integral role that local government plays in Welsh public life. When I sat as a councillor for nearly three terms, it did not always seem that this Chamber understood the complexities of life on the ground in an era of huge public spending cuts inflicted...
Rhianon Passmore: I’m glad to rise in this important debate brought by our fellow Assembly Members. All of us here today know how dramatically our lives are changing. Indeed, nobody would bat an eye if I said I’d visited a supermarket this morning and paid for my goods at the self-service counter, and nobody would bat an eye if I said that I’d taken a train to Cardiff, my journey controlled by one...
Rhianon Passmore: Will you take an intervention?
Rhianon Passmore: Do you believe the likely outcome for the people of the United Kingdom will be a tariff tax on goods?
Rhianon Passmore: First Minister, today we learn that there has been a 16 per cent increase in the number of junior doctors choosing to come to or stay in Wales to train to become GPs. Across the Welsh NHS, waiting times are going down; average response times to emergency calls are now less than five minutes; the British Heart Foundation described Wales as a world leader in cardiac rehabilitation; there’s...
Rhianon Passmore: [Continues.]—major alerts because of a shortage of beds. What message do you have for the men and women who work in the national health service and have had to endure the Tories’ attempts to denigrate the Welsh NHS over the last few years?
Rhianon Passmore: Cabinet Secretary, may I congratulate you on your energetic and sterling efforts to ensure that Wales is promoted in television and film productions? I noted with interest the promotional showreel introduced by Hollywood A-lister Michael Sheen, which features clips from some of the latest major productions filmed in Wales and which does promote everything that the country has to offer as a...
Rhianon Passmore: First Minister, in Llandudno on Saturday at the Welsh Labour conference, you announced three significant measures that will make a tangible difference to passengers on public transport. Every train on the Wales and borders franchise will be equipped with free Wi-Fi by September this year, a roll-out of free Wi-Fi to train stations across Wales, starting with 50 of the busiest stations in...
Rhianon Passmore: Will the Cabinet Secretary outline what actions the Welsh Government is taking to improve initial teacher education?
