Mohammad Asghar: The Welsh Conservatives are committed to ending the use of wild animals in circuses. Does the Cabinet Secretary agree with me that laws relating to the welfare of animals, whether they are domestic pets, farm livestock or wildlife, would benefit from being consolidated into a single Act of this Assembly to ensure greater protection and enforcement in Wales?
Mohammad Asghar: Increasing access to the countryside could deliver significant benefits in improving the health and well-being of the public. However, concerns have been expressed that unrestricted access to the countryside could cause environmental and economic damage. Does the Cabinet Secretary recognise these concerns, and how will she ensure widening access will take into account the need to maintain a...
Mohammad Asghar: 9. How will the policies contained in the Welsh Government’s ‘Taking Wales Forward’ programme improve support for veterans in Wales? OAQ(5)0037(CC)
Mohammad Asghar: 15. How will the policies contained in the Welsh Government’s ‘Taking Wales Forward’ programme fight modern slavery in Wales? OAQ(5)0038(CC)
Mohammad Asghar: The Older People’s Commissioner for Wales has stressed the need to keep our older people in the workforce and to bring them back to work as well. How will the Welsh Government ensure that the 100,000 high-quality apprenticeships promised in his programme for government are delivered on a needs base rather than on the age of the person in Wales?
Mohammad Asghar: [Continues.]—an approach to encourage home ownership.
Mohammad Asghar: One that does not take away the ladder of opportunity and kills the hopes and dreams of many families in Wales. I support the motion.
Mohammad Asghar: This dogma-driven decision has nothing to do with increasing the supply of social housing. Sorry, Joyce. It has everything to do with shifting the blame for Labour’s total failure, after 17 years in power, to increase the supply of social housing. Actually, Deputy Presiding Officer, in the Newport area they tried to build those houses in the academic, the university campus. Today—only...
Mohammad Asghar: It was Sir Anthony Eden, who, as Prime Minister in the mid-1950s, had the vision of creating a property-owning democracy in this country. Ever since, for successive Conservative Governments, widening home ownership has been a core principle. For too many of our people, home ownership was only a dream. They wanted to own their own home, but it was beyond their reach. Too many were denied the...
Mohammad Asghar: A report last year by leading Welsh mental health and wellbeing charity Gofal found that 59 per cent of respondents judged access to statutory alcohol services in Torfaen as average, poor or very poor. Does the Cabinet Secretary share my concern at these results, and will he agree that we need to review these treatment services to see what can be done to improve them in Torfaen and South...
Mohammad Asghar: The National Osteoporosis Society has claimed that more services to help diagnose this condition could save NHS Wales £4.5 million per year. They say that only half of the hospitals in Wales currently provide fracture liaison services for out-patients. Cabinet Secretary, what is the Welsh Government doing to improve the services that could help diagnose and prevent osteoporosis in Wales?
Mohammad Asghar: Thank you for the reply, Minister. Creating a highly skilled workforce is vital if we are to meet the needs of a growing economy. How will the Cabinet Secretary ensure that the 100,000 apprenticeships pledge in the programme for government will deliver the skills required by the businesses to make them grow, thereby improving employment opportunities in Wales?
Mohammad Asghar: 6. How will the policies contained in the Welsh Government’s ‘Taking Wales Forward’ programme improve employment opportunities in Wales? OAQ(5)0039(EI)
Mohammad Asghar: How will the policies contained in the Welsh Government's 'Taking Wales Forward' programme tackle drug and alcohol addiction in Wales?
Mohammad Asghar: This statement today by the Cabinet Secretary for economy will be met with disappointment and dismay by everyone who has experienced delay in their journey time due to congestion on the M4, including myself, who travels virtually four times a week. If I leave before seven o’clock, it takes me still more than 40 minutes from Newport to this place. Lord help those who come after half past...
Mohammad Asghar: Thank you for the quick answer, Minister. Online social media platforms can be used by offenders to make contact with children who are unaware of the sinister intentions that may lie behind a seemingly innocent exchange. The NSPCC has called for online safety lessons to become part of the curriculum so children can recognise the signs of this behaviour and its dangers. Will the First Minister...
Mohammad Asghar: 7. Will the First Minister make a statement on the Welsh Government's digital competence framework? OAQ(5)0176(FM)
Mohammad Asghar: In 2012 I was given leave to introduce an enterprise Bill in this Assembly. The aim of my Bill was to propose a series of measures to boost economic growth, employment, procurement and skills. These measures, I believe, would have increased prosperity and tackled community deprivation in Wales. Sadly, my Bill did not succeed in passing into law. Now, four years later, the Welsh Government has...
Mohammad Asghar: Thank you for the reply, Cabinet Secretary. Welsh Government statistics have shown a marked general attainment gap in the foundation phase, key stage 2 and key stage 3. Girls outperform boys across all key subjects in each of the first three stages of learning and, for the first time, the difference between boys and girls in the key foundation phase indicator has widened. What action does the...
Mohammad Asghar: 5. Will the Minister make a statement on attainment levels in Key Stages 1 to 3 in schools in Wales? OAQ(5)0021(EDU)
