Caroline Jones: I’d like to thank Simon Thomas, Paul Davies, Neil Hamilton and Llyr Gruffydd for putting this motion before us today. I agree that we need to tackle bovine TB by committing to use the most effective measures to control and eradicate the disease. I do not agree that culling the badger population is the most effective measure to tackle bovine TB. In fact, all the scientific evidence shows...
Caroline Jones: Thank you for your statement, Cabinet Secretary, on the new treatment fund. We look forward to receiving more concrete details in the future. Your statement mentions that the fund will provide extra funds for new medicines, but can you confirm it will also fund new treatments, for example proton beam therapy? My question on co-funding has already been answered, so I’ll move on. Moving on to...
Caroline Jones: Thank you, First Minister. Last winter, we saw unprecedented levels of demand on unscheduled care. People struggling to get access to a GP over the winter months put enormous strain on our A&E departments as patients go there to seek medical treatment. According to the RCN, our hospitals are so full all year round that the system cannot cope with the seasonal spike in demand. We have to...
Caroline Jones: First Minister, the reason ABMU are to receive targeted intervention is due to poor performance in unscheduled cancer care. The most recent figures show that just 83 per cent of patients diagnosed via the urgent suspected-cancer route start treatment within 62 days. We all know that timely treatment and intervention reduces the risk that the cancer will spread and increases the chances of...
Caroline Jones: First Minister, I’ve been contacted by a number of constituents who have expressed concern over the level of their business rates, which is putting a strain on their business finances. As they fall outside the threshold for small business rate relief, they have to pay the full business rates, irrespective of the affordability. Unless these small business owners find smaller, cheaper...
Caroline Jones: 6. Will the First Minister outline how the Welsh Government is helping the NHS prepare for the forthcoming winter? OAQ(5)0162(FM)
Caroline Jones: Yes, certainly.
Caroline Jones: In comprehensive schools?
Caroline Jones: With 3,000 pupils—
Caroline Jones: I totally disagree with you on that point. I think that smaller class sizes and smaller schools—you help the most vulnerable in those schools, but you lose them in the comprehensive system. Thank you.
Caroline Jones: No, sorry, Llyr, I won’t. The demand for grammar schools in those few pockets where they still exist has skyrocketed. So, we are not looking at what people want again, we’re looking at imposing something that they may not want. Unfortunately, those grammar schools only exist in the wealthier parts of southern England and, together with rising house prices, this has seen fewer and fewer...
Caroline Jones: When I first entered teacher training college, the education landscape was very different to that we see today. The academically inclined did go to grammar schools, but those who were more suited to a vocation went to a secondary modern school. State grammar schools were educating hundreds of thousands of pupils, offering a free education comparable to that of fee-paying schools....
Caroline Jones: Thank you for your statement, Cabinet Secretary. I am pleased that the Welsh Government accept that there is a crisis in the primary care field. We wish you every success with this campaign, because Wales badly needs more GPs, otherwise we have a massive problem. Unfortunately, your proposals will do little to help us in the here-and-now situation. With the NHS preparing for the annual winter...
Caroline Jones: First Minister, while we welcome your reaffirmation of the Welsh Government’s commitment to library services, your support is of little comfort to those communities who have had their libraries closed as a result of local government cuts. We have seen many libraries close their doors for good, while others owe their existence to a small team of dedicated volunteers. So, what is the Welsh...
Caroline Jones: What action is the Welsh Government taking to mitigate the health impacts of air pollution in Wales?
Caroline Jones: Not again. We have to embrace free trade with the whole world, rather than solely focusing on an increasingly insular trading bloc. It’s time for the UK Government to deliver on their promise that Brexit means Brexit, and we need Brexit as soon as possible.
Caroline Jones: Yes, we have Aston Martin coming to St Athan, creating 750 jobs. So that’s no small feat, is it? Therefore, I do say that Brexit offers the UK and Wales a great opportunity to boost trade, grow our industry, and increase employment. Once we are released, as well, I think it will increase even further, when we trigger article 50. We firmly believe that we need free trade with the EU, not...
Caroline Jones: Thank you very much. Last week, I was invited to the opening of two new businesses in my region. So, if people on the smaller scale are willing to invest their hard-earned money, then I can see other businesses capitalising as well, large businesses.
Caroline Jones: Yes.
Caroline Jones: Well, all I can say, Rhun, is that, from personal experience, the businesses in my region—a lot of businesses—are opening new businesses, empty premises are becoming filled, and that I haven’t heard of any person saying to me that—. As a former businesswoman myself, I haven’t had anyone come to me or speak to me saying that they’re not going to take any opportunity because of...
