Leanne Wood: There was one sliver of positivity in that more decisions about Wales would be made in Wales, we were promised. That glimmer of hope has now gone. So, First Minister, tonight we will vote to accept this disastrous Brexit Bill. You can choose who to back: Plaid Cymru, the Scottish Labour Party, the Scottish and English Liberal Democrat parties, the Green Party, the Scottish Government, legal...
Leanne Wood: Diolch, Llywydd. Does the First Minister agree that, quite clearly, there is a power grab going on by Whitehall on the EU withdrawal Bill?
Leanne Wood: It's absurd and embarrassing in equal measure that this Government chooses to endorse Theresa May rather than their own party leader. It's difficult to find any real benefits to exiting the EU, but there was one tiny sliver of positivity—[Interruption.]—
Leanne Wood: 6. Will the First Minister make a statement on the performance of the ambulance service? OAQ52202
Leanne Wood: At the same time as the Department for Work and Pensions is closing local offices, universal credit is taking hold in Wales. By 2022, 400,000 households in Wales will rely on universal credit. This Labour Government has previously, and again today, shunned the opportunity to devolve welfare administration, and you have claimed that it would be too costly. The £266 million figure quoted by...
Leanne Wood: 6. What plans does the Welsh Government have to seek the devolution of welfare administration? OAQ52145
Leanne Wood: First Minister, this is a dodgy deal, and it's one that you have signed up to. And it's not simply created constitutional chaos. Your decision to give this Bill consent will have ramifications for our economy as well. Whilst your party is all over the place on this question, your Ministers and Labour Members continue to campaign for membership of a customs union. By advising that we consent...
Leanne Wood: The words in that statement, First Minister, were not my words. They were taken from an analysis by the National Assembly for Wales's legal team that confirms the damning repercussions of the dodgy deal between the Tories in Westminster and your Labour Government. Last week, Labour frontbench Members claimed that Plaid Cymru didn't understand the outcome of this deal when it came to the...
Leanne Wood: Diolch, Llywydd. The EU withdrawal Bill, as amended, will still allow the Assembly's competence to be restricted without its consent, and the inter-governmental agreement does not provide water-tight assurance that this will not happen. Does the First Minister agree or disagree with that statement?
Leanne Wood: It's up to Westminster to decide all of this. We are a junior partner in the process. Now, in the non-binding agreement there is a vague commitment not to legislate on England-only matters, whereas in the legally binding amendment Wales is explicitly precluded from legislating on Wales-only matters. Let me give Members an example. Westminster can legislate on farming, which is a devolved...
Leanne Wood: And it shows exactly why the Tories cannot be trusted on this. Yesterday, the Cabinet Secretary attempted to argue the semantics of a consent decision versus consent. Again, there is no difference. What you conceded to is Westminster can interpret 'no' as 'yes', and it's a situation of, 'Heads we lose, tails they win'. Let's turn to the so-called agreement. Trust not law is what underpins...
Leanne Wood: Diolch. We've heard the Orwellian doublespeak that this Government has used to justify its capitulation, and the accusation that has been levelled at us is one that we are flag-waving nationalists. Well, I would say at least our flag is not the white flag of surrender. Today, I'm going to deconstruct this deal. I want to take it apart piece by piece, and the illogical justification that has...
Leanne Wood: Elyn Stephens.
Leanne Wood: Poverty is a feminist issue. When young women miss school because they can't afford sanitary products, it's poverty. When women have to use toilet paper, old clothes, or often nothing at all, in place of pads and tampons when they menstruate, it's poverty. When women have to make the choice between buying sanitary products, clothes, bus fare or food, it's poverty. Yes, poverty is a feminist...
Leanne Wood: Respect is earned.
Leanne Wood: I'd just like to ask Members to consider one very simple question: how can a Member of this Assembly who has been found to be racist safely represent people of colour in her region? And the answer is that she can't, and I believe that that is a problem. Now, the leader of UKIP and the UKIP Member on the panel have accepted that their Member was racist, and no amount of letters quoting other...
Leanne Wood: The Miller versus the Crown case confirmed that the Sewel convention isn't worth the paper that it's written on. In fact, on at least seven occasions, Westminster has forced legislation on Wales without its consent. Under the Labour-Tory agreement on the withdrawal Bill, there is a new definition of 'consent'. Semantic arguments are being used by Ministers to argue that this revision to the...
Leanne Wood: And I would appreciate an answer that doesn't tell me that I don't understand the issue, please.
Leanne Wood: That's such a patronising line of argument.
Leanne Wood: The agreement between the Tories in Westminster and the Labour Welsh Government here is made up of two parts: the amendments to the legislation and the agreement itself. The policy areas included in the agreement are not in the legislation and they're not comprehensive. It's entirely plausible that, as Brexit rolls on, Westminster will decide that it needs to have more control over other...
