David Rowlands: Well, providing those students pay their way and actually do pay for their education here, we ought to be welcoming them. Absolutely. I’ll deal with Conservatives’ third amendment with a reminder of the Conservative pledges under Cameron before the previous general election. He said: ‘Our plan to control immigration will put you, your family and the British people first. We will reduce...
David Rowlands: Yes, of course.
David Rowlands: I’d like to confine my comments to the Conservatives’ amendments. First, can I take point 1? That is, of course, after ignoring the usual fallacious point of ‘delete all’, a gambit that should be disallowed. Amendments should be instruments to alter, not annul motions, and I notice that the other two parties are using exactly same ploy this evening. But I will be magnanimous in saying...
David Rowlands: Well, I understand that we do have arenas in Cardiff that host something like up to 80,000 people, but we’re talking about major, say, musical events et cetera. Would the Welsh Government be open to the possibility of helping to fund a major arena for this sort of thing, because it can’t be right that in Cardiff city, which is one of the fastest-growing cities in Europe, we have Welsh...
David Rowlands: Diolch, Llywydd. Continuing on the earlier theme of staging events, Cabinet Secretary, would the Cabinet Secretary update us on his proposal for the construction of a multipurpose arena with a capacity of, perhaps, 20,000, and which would host a multiplicity of smaller events?
David Rowlands: Will the Cabinet Secretary make a statement on stimulating economic growth in south-east Wales outside of Cardiff?
David Rowlands: Well, no. I have to disagree with you. What the Welsh farming industry should be asking itself is not what is going to happen post Brexit, but what would have happened if we had not had Brexit. I have to disagree with Rhun ap Iorwerth when he says that the common agricultural policy has been favourable to Welsh farmers. The common agricultural policy is not a static one. The accession of some...
David Rowlands: We must all acknowledge that these are uncertain times for the farming community in Wales. Until the full details of the Brexit deal are finalised, Welsh farmers, and, indeed, all UK farmers, are unsure of what the future holds. The truth of the matter, however, is that, if the UK Government makes the right decisions, British farmers should be far better off than they were under the common...
David Rowlands: First of all, shall I say that we will be supporting this motion? But, if, as it appears, the purpose of the ‘Future Landscapes’ report is to form a basis upon which any new legislation on our national parks will be made, the first question we must therefore ask is: why does the Welsh Government see a need for such legislation? The report seems to imply that the need for new legislation...
David Rowlands: [Continues.]—not continually expand its budget. No, thank you. I find it quite appalling that many Members in this Chamber are quite happy to see the working classes of this country have their pockets picked in order to keep despots in power—[Interruption.]—such people as Mugabe et cetera, that you’re happy that huge amounts of money are wasted simply so that you can salve your own...
David Rowlands: Yes, of course I will.
David Rowlands: Thank you. Yes, yes, you’re talking about a tiny, tiny percentage of the population. That’s all you’re talking about—a tiny percentage of those people—[Interruption.] They will almost certainly live in abject poverty, with no prospect of meaningful work. It is not enough for us to save them from starvation; we have to give them hope and a possibility of them improving their lives in...
David Rowlands: Well, if there’s any bile in this Chamber, it’s just come from the gentleman who just sat down in his appalling personal attacks on other AMs in this Chamber. Absolutely disgraceful. [Interruption.] Absolutely disgraceful. Of the £250 million in aid we sent to Ethiopia last year, only a tiny proportion went to wealth creation. In other words, we’re not helping these countries to...
David Rowlands: Thank you, Cabinet Secretary. Can I move on to another matter? As the Cabinet Secretary is aware, Blaenavon is a world heritage site with many thousands of visitors each year enjoying not only the restored ironworks, but also Big Pit and Blaenavon railway. However, this does not seem to be having the desired effect on the town itself, with many shops on the high street closed. Does the Welsh...
David Rowlands: Diolch, Llywydd. Could the Cabinet Secretary update us on the Heads of the Valleys road improvement scheme and the expected finishing date for the Clydach gorge section?
David Rowlands: Thank you, Cabinet Secretary, for that answer. I asked the question, Cabinet Secretary, because I was wondering if it will be finished in time for the Circuit of Wales project.
David Rowlands: Will the Cabinet Secretary make a statement on locating sixth forms in one central college?
David Rowlands: Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd. When I opened this debate, I said the Welsh Government’s aim for an 80 per cent carbon footprint reduction was a laudable objective. But I believe there are far better ways of achieving this objective. In a previous debate, Huw Irranca-Davies talked of cutting energy use as part of the strategy to reduce our carbon footprint. I believe this is a much more sustainable...
David Rowlands: Yes, fine. First of all, obviously, the whole thrust of this debate is that there’s overdevelopment of a particular area. I noticed something you say that you’re so given to in Plaid that you want to look after the environment, et cetera, but I note you want to take point 3, subsection a), which is that we should not be denuding our forests in order to build these—you want to take that out.
David Rowlands: Of course.
