Russell George: Thank you, Presiding Officer. Can I wish you and colleagues across the Chamber a happy Christmas, Minister? Not a single surgical hub exists in Wales. Surgical hubs have been identified by the Royal College of Surgeons as essential to tackling the record treatment backlogs in the NHS, which now stands at over three quarters of a million cases in Wales. They've also proven central to...
Russell George: The Welsh budget should, of course, be about how the Welsh Government cuts its cloth, about its spending priorities, but listening to the exchange between the First Minister and the leader of the opposition this morning, I have to wonder why we're having this debate. Too often, I wonder why constantly the Welsh Government points its finger at Westminster rather than making this about the...
Russell George: Minister, the RCN informed me today that you have still not met with them specifically to discuss nurses' pay, and that you've not opened negotiations with them or through the Welsh NHS partnership forum, which I think is extremely disappointing. Frustratingly, you still point the finger to Westminster rather than take responsibility for your actions here. Now, this is your decision. They're...
Russell George: First Minister, what I've noted is that over the last 12 months in particular, more of my constituents are opting to go for private treatment because they have made that decision that they no longer want to wait on an NHS waiting list, often in pain. On one occasion, one constituent, I know, went into debt in order to pay for private treatment. Now, the Health and Social Care Committee has...
Russell George: The Welsh Government has made its own decisions, and at times very different decisions, and it's entitled, of course, to do that, but I would hope the First Minister would accept there should be scrutiny and accountability for those decisions that were made. And we know that the UK inquiry is not able to do that. So, I hope the First Minister will be able to set out why, if he does remain so...
Russell George: Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd, and I move the motion this afternoon, tabled in the name of my colleague, Darren Millar. Our motion today proposes that this Senedd establishes a Wales COVID-19 inquiry special purpose committee and agrees that the remit of the committee would be to (a) identify where the UK COVID-19 inquiry is not able to fully scrutinise the response of the Welsh Government and Welsh...
Russell George: Will the First Minister make a statement on the performance of Rent Smart Wales?
Russell George: Diolch, Presiding Officer. Can I thank Plaid Cymru for bringing forward this debate today? A quite proper use of debating time in the Chamber this afternoon. A strike will have devastating consequences for patients, and we know six of the seven health boards have voted in favour of strike action. I think that just shows how desperate nurses are for the Welsh Government to listen to them....
Russell George: Minister, one improvement that's needed on the A483 is in regards to the Pant-Llanymynech bypass, which I've mentioned a number of times in this Chamber, and you'll know I'm very keen to see this bypass, partly in my constituency, move forward. So, I'm quite keen that, due to the roads review on the Welsh side, this scheme isn't delayed any further. As I understand it, the UK Government—....
Russell George: Thank you for your answer, Minister. The services provided by the Wales Air Ambulance to the people of mid Wales and other areas of Wales is invaluable. There is deep concern, as you know, Minister, with proposals to move the Welshpool base and how that will strengthen services in mid Wales. I find it difficult to accept that moving a helicopter and road vehicle further away from mid Wales...
Russell George: 6. How is the Welsh Government ensuring that people living in mid Wales have adequate access to NHS services? OQ58705
Russell George: Thank you, Minister, for your response. We know that, in the last half an hour, as you've said, six health boards across Wales out of the seven have responded to the result of the RCN strike ballot, and strikes will take place in those health board areas. I have to say, Minister, I'm disappointed by your response, trying to deflect away from your responsibility. This is a Labour-run NHS in...
Russell George: 1. Will the Minister make a statement on a potential strike by nurses? TQ674
Russell George: Can I thank the Minister for her statement today? I know that the First Minister and you have stated on numerous occasions throughout the pandemic that your Government would be guided by the science. I agree, of course, with that approach as well, and the Government set up the technical advisory cell and has also taken on board the joint committee on vaccination and immunisation’s...
Russell George: How is the Welsh Government addressing the backlog in NHS waiting times for treatment?
Russell George: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. Can I thank all Members for taking part in this debate this afternoon, and I particularly thank—I think Gareth Davies made a point in his contribution of thanking the clerking team and the wider research team that support our committee’s work, so I’d like to put that on the record from myself as well. I think that it was Rhun and Sarah who talked...
Russell George: And let's just remember as well that delayed transfers of care are not just statistics. Behind every delayed transfer, there is a person who has not received the care and support they need to be able to return home or to move into appropriate accommodation. It also affects family members and unpaid carers, who find themselves in the impossible position of leaving their loved ones in hospital...
Russell George: Diolch, Deputy Presiding Officer. I’m pleased to open this second committee report debate this afternoon, this debate on the Health and Social Care Committee’s report on ‘Hospital discharge and its impact on patient flow through hospitals’. I’m happy to move the motion tabled in my name. Our report made 25 recommendations and I was very pleased that the Welsh Government accepted 20...
Russell George: Thank you, Llywydd. Minister, during the recent Petitions Committee debate, you said, 'it's simply inaccurate to suggest that extending section 25B to all of those areas would result in giving Wales "the full team of nurses", as the petition puts it, and that's simply because, at the moment, those nurses don't exist.' What I'm just trying to rectify, myself, and give you an opportunity to...
Russell George: Minister, I just want to raise an issue with you that I wanted to just check if you're aware of. A constituent of mine—a Welsh student—applied to an educational provider in England on a professional barrister training course, only to be told by the provider that they weren't willing to access the funding through Student Finance Wales. Now, this isn't an issue of concern—. This isn't a...
