Joyce Watson: Will you take an intervention?
Joyce Watson: You've got plenty of time.
Joyce Watson: There's been some very interesting contributions here this afternoon, and I've listened to most of them, some, I have to say, with interest, and others with disbelief, and I'm not going to make any further comments on which are which. But one thing I will say is that this is a joint budget, it has been agreed between Labour and Plaid, and Plaid have come to the table and put forward things...
Joyce Watson: Thank you. I was contacted last week by a constituent who was extremely concerned about the impact that this will have on their small family-owned business. Palmer and Harvey is the main supplier, and that is the case for hundreds of convenience stores in rural areas. I was informed by the constituent that Palmer and Harvey customers do have accounts with agreed terms that allow shops to pay...
Joyce Watson: 6. Will the First Minister make a statement in response to the announcement that wholesaler Palmer and Harvey has gone into administration? OAQ51438
Joyce Watson: Thank you—thank you for taking an intervention. Yes, you're right to point out that there's been more money put in this year, in the top-up, but, if you actually look at the real figures, we will now be 7 per cent lower. We will receive 7 per cent less, in real terms, than we were having before this Conservative Government came into power. So, I think the real figure is—. And I hope...
Joyce Watson: Will you take an intervention?
Joyce Watson: I did a whole report on this myself in 2013, and there were protocols put in place in 2011. I was at the launch of the Gwent project, and here we are, where it is only a project. How quickly can other children, like the children in my area, expect to see the services that, in my opinion, they rightly deserve, and that those authorities who were told in 2011 to work together start doing so?
Joyce Watson: I thank you for that and I see the signs along the way. One of the areas that has been brought to my attention—an area of concern—is the call by residents in Lower Town Fishguard for improvements on pedestrian access. Because—I'm sure you know the area, but there is a real pinch point and narrowing of that particular road where pedestrians and traffic meet, and it is deemed highly...
Joyce Watson: 4. Will the Cabinet Secretary make a statement on transport projects in Mid and West Wales? OAQ51328
Joyce Watson: I'm pleased to have a minute in this debate, but I'm not at all pleased about the debate; those two things are completely separate. I am, as everybody knows, the chair of the cross-party group on human trafficking or anti-slavery, and the founding member of that. I do find the whole tenor of what I have had to sit through and endure completely and utterly distasteful. I think it would have...
Joyce Watson: First of all, I want to thank Julie for bringing this debate, because if we can't talk about it, then nobody can. If we don't talk about it, nothing gets changed and it forever stays in the darkest recesses of society, let alone people's minds—those who have gone through this and experienced it. I did catch the BBC Two programme last week, and I would encourage people to watch it—Extreme...
Joyce Watson: Thank you, Cabinet Secretary, for everything that you've said, but I have to say that I was particularly horrified about the events that followed the escape. I'm particularly concerned that the lynx was killed when, in my opinion, it could have been trapped. I looked at the traps that were used and there is criticism about that—about the fact that they weren't appropriate and that they...
Joyce Watson: I was particularly pleased to hear about the new monetary incentives for new graduates considering a career in teaching in Wales. That will attract, we hope, high-achieving graduates into that profession, particularly with the priority subject areas like maths, physics, chemistry, Welsh, and the new emerging computer sciences, because that's the only way, as I can see fit, that we will be...
Joyce Watson: 8. Will the Cabinet Secretary make a statement on the recruitment of teachers in Wales? OAQ51266
Joyce Watson: I too welcome the opportunity to debate the important findings, recommendations and priority areas outlined in the Children's Commissioner for Wales's annual report. It certainly is fitting that it's being discussed during Anti-Bullying Week. I think it's right that we take the opportunity to both reflect on what has been a year of progress and achievement for children's rights in Wales, but...
Joyce Watson: Diolch, Llywydd. Before I start to pay tribute, I want to offer my condolences to Bernie, to Jack, to Lucy and the family. In all the coverage of the loss of our friend Carl, one word and one word alone keeps getting repeated, and that is the word 'authentic'. Everything about Carl rang true. It was obvious to everyone who met him that Carl was in politics for the right reasons....
Joyce Watson: That’s very generous of you, thank you very much. The point is I will have a debate with people. What you’re actually doing is closing the debate down. Can’t you see that?
Joyce Watson: Well, that is true. [Laughter.]
Joyce Watson: I don’t want a speech; this is supposed to be an intervention.
