Huw Irranca-Davies: Could I ask for two statements? One statement would be from Welsh Government Ministers on the issue of erosion of land behind Valley terraces on which run old unadopted lanes alongside watercourses, which threaten over time to erode not only the lanes but the rear gardens of private properties. So, in Caerau in my constituency we have a row of terraced houses backing onto such a watercourse...
Huw Irranca-Davies: Can I begin my contribution by thanking members of the committee, and our new member as well, for their contributions today, but also John and his chairing for taking us back to look at this issue, which predecessors on this committee, under his stewardship, have looked at—both this and also wider issues related to it as well? I think it was well worth doing, because it's probably one of...
Huw Irranca-Davies: What assessment has the Minister made of the United States Surgeon General’s claims that e-cigarettes are unsafe for young people?
Huw Irranca-Davies: The First Minister will know that for me, and many of my south Wales Valleys representatives here—we don't have the options for trains in many of these valleys; it is the bus that is the critical one if we want to encourage people to make that modal shift across onto public transport, with the climate change gains, but also a different way of travelling as well. But the reality is, I think,...
Huw Irranca-Davies: 7. What plans does the Welsh Government have to improve bus services in the south Wales valleys? OAQ55092
Huw Irranca-Davies: Could we have a statement from Welsh Government on safeguarding the future of the six nations rugby tournament on free-to-view channels? This incredible competition, the crown jewels of international rugby, faces the real threat of disappearing behind a pay wall. Now, the UK Government has classified the six nations as a second-tier event of national importance, which can be provided behind a...
Huw Irranca-Davies: A genuine, serious point, beyond the political bluster and so on, a genuine point, in advance of the debate this afternoon: would he agree with me that any future policy on fisheries, beyond the slogans of getting back our control of our fisheries, actually needs to comply with the scientific evidence on maximum sustainable yield? The reason for that, I would put to him, is that otherwise, we...
Huw Irranca-Davies: Diolch, Llywydd. The Royal Glamorgan Hospital serves my constituents from Llanharan and Gilfach Goch and Evanstown areas, though the Princess of Wales Hospital in Bridgend, which also now falls within the Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board footprint, is also of vital importance to those and other constituents. So, whilst none of us, as responsible Members of the Senedd, can ignore the...
Huw Irranca-Davies: That's really good news to hear. The Minister must be as frustrated as I am when we go to the supermarkets that proclaim all the good work that they're doing on reducing plastics and we still see fruit and veg aisles lined with plastic-wrapped fruit and veg. It's quite interesting today that I've just spotted an organisation called Plastic Expiry, which is taking peaceful direct action by...
Huw Irranca-Davies: Minister, I welcome that comment that not every farm does pollute. I've had representations from farmers in my own constituency, which, as you know, is predominantly characterised by smaller family farms with a mixture of sheep and livestock and some arable, and they're also characterised by that greater biodiversity, which typically does come with smaller, mixed farms. Now, they share the...
Huw Irranca-Davies: 5. Will the Minister provide an update on the Welsh Government’s proposals to tackle single-use plastics? OAQ54986
Huw Irranca-Davies: Now more than ever we should remind ourselves that, if left unopposed, all forms of hatred and dehumanising the Other will undermine democratic values and human rights, and will feed violent extremism. We cannot afford to live in societies where people fear for their safety and suffer discrimination and a denial of rights on a daily basis, for no other reason than their identity and...
Huw Irranca-Davies: I notice that, in the press release that accompanied that update last week, it mentioned that, in the next phase, it'll move on to focusing on the regional approach. Much of the focus at the moment has been very much on the site itself, the legacy, the community fund that will be left, which, I have to say—I'm sure my colleague Carwyn and I will both agree—should be as large as any...
Huw Irranca-Davies: 6. Will the First Minister provide an update on the latest meeting of the Ford Bridgend Taskforce? OAQ54985
Huw Irranca-Davies: Would the Minister give way?
Huw Irranca-Davies: Before the Minister finishes his remarks, I just wanted to raise something that has not been raised today. I wonder whether he's had time to get any clarity from the UK Government on the impact for Welsh employers. Because my understanding is that, for tier 2 non-EU workers who are coming into the UK—non-EU, which is what it's all going to be now applied to—there is a surcharge, an...
Huw Irranca-Davies: It's been an interesting debate this afternoon already. It does remind me of the quote from somebody who was born in 1911, Max Frisch, who said: 'We asked for workers. We got people instead.' People bring with them their own cultures, their own interests and opinions, and they bring with them a wealth and a depth of tapestry of their own background and their family needs. They don't just come...
Huw Irranca-Davies: What assessment has the Minister made of the risks to the devolution arrangements in Wales of the European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Bill?
Huw Irranca-Davies: Thank you for giving way. As you noted, in the work that's been done on ACEs and prevention, but also on domestic abuse, the police indeed do work very much within policy frameworks set by Welsh Government. I've got no reason to anticipate they'd work in any different way with this.
Huw Irranca-Davies: Could we have a statement or a debate on the provision of appropriate treatments for borderline personality disorder in a consistent way right across Wales? I've been approached by an articulate and very well-informed constituent—informed through personal experience and through academic research—who has raised the difficulty of obtaining dialectical behaviour therapy, DBT, in the Cwm Taf...
