Siân Gwenllian: Plaid Cymru supports this proposal. Clearly, it is entirely unacceptable that landlords provide accommodation free of charge, but expecting to be ‘paid’ with sexual favours, and I truly hope that there is a way of preventing this. Unfortunately, as we have heard, there is evidence that this is happening in London, Bristol, Birmingham, in Scotland, and, unfortunately, now here in Wales...
Siân Gwenllian: I want to focus on the integration of social care and health, and the problems that creating a more and more patchy system would create if we were to move towards using more and more private contractors. We’ve discussed the need to integrate health and social care on a number of occasions. There are a number of problems caused as different institutions argue over the different elements...
Siân Gwenllian: Despite what we’ve heard from one direction this afternoon, there is a general consensus in Wales that policing should be devolved to Wales, as has happened in Scotland, Northern Ireland, London and Manchester. I want to focus on two arguments why it makes sense to devolve to Wales. Effective policing means an effective and close relationship with the devolved services in Wales, and...
Siân Gwenllian: Plaid Cymru will safeguard workers and public services in Wales, every step of the way. Thank you.
Siân Gwenllian: Plaid Cymru supports the principles of the Trade Union (Wales) Bill, and we also welcome the desire to introduce an amendment on the use of agency workers, although we do agree that it would, perhaps, have been better for it to have been included from the outset, as the Constitutional and Legislative Affairs Committee has stated. This Bill, of course, will disapply aspects of the UK...
Siân Gwenllian: No. Mae hyn yn ei dro yn creu dyledion, yn achosi straen ac yn effeithio ar ansawdd bywyd y gweithwyr a’u teuluoedd. Nid yw cytundebau dim oriau yn gytundebau teg, ac mae’n hollol amlwg bod angen i ni symud tuag at sefyllfa o ddileu’r math yma o gytundebau yng Nghymru, ac mae’r grym gennych chi yn y Llywodraeth. Yn ôl Gwasanaeth Ymchwil y Cynulliad, mae hyd at 48,000 o bobl yn...
Siân Gwenllian: Thank you very much, and thank you for an interesting debate, despite the break in the middle. Janet Finch-Saunders, at the beginning of this debate, mentioned the impact of cuts on public services, but those are the cuts imposed by the Conservatives. They are your cuts, so it makes no sense, Janet, to vote Tory. It doesn’t make any sense whatsoever for anyone who wants to safeguard our...
Siân Gwenllian: Thank you. It’s a pleasure for me, on behalf of Plaid Cymru, to focus all our attention this afternoon on the importance of maintaining and developing strong local government in Wales. By strengthening our communities, we will also strengthen our nation. With the announcement made by the UK Prime Minister of an election on 8 June taking all of the attention of the press and politicians of...
Siân Gwenllian: You’ll be aware that the community hydro sector has been very badly affected as business rates are revaluated. Over 92 per cent of hydro schemes in Wales face a huge increase, up to 900 per cent. Your manifesto for 2016 noted your party’s support to community energy schemes. Can you commit to offer a generous rate relief scheme to support community energy projects in Wales as happens in...
Siân Gwenllian: It appears to me that there is a huge gulf between what Labour says and what Labour does. There is a gap between the Labour Government in Cardiff and Labour’s leaders in London, and also a gap between what Ministers in Cardiff Bay say and what Labour councils on the ground are actually doing. I’m talking specifically here about plans to encourage people to shop on their local high streets...
Siân Gwenllian: You’ve referred today, and the First Minister yesterday referred, to these issues that there are in Wales in terms of scrapping zero-hours contracts, and you’ve argued in the past that including amendments to abolish zero-hours contracts in the social services Bill could have undermined the Bill, making it open to challenge in the High Court. But it would have been possible for you to...
Siân Gwenllian: Thank you. Yesterday, during First Minister’s questions, Steffan Lewis urged for an update on the First Minister’s fair work commission and the leader of Plaid Cymru asked for a sign of support to the principle of scrapping zero-hours contracts in the public sector in Wales. Now, I want to follow that issue up further with you this afternoon. Do you agree with me and with the leaders of...
Siân Gwenllian: 8. Will the Cabinet Secretary make a statement on business rates relating to community energy projects? OAQ(5)0117(FLG)[W]
Siân Gwenllian: The case for a medical school to serve north Wales, and rural areas of our nation, is clear and robust. The Betsi Cadwaladr University Local Health Board will have spent over £21 million on employing agency medical staff over the past 11 months up until the end of February this year. And the Royal College of Physicians summarises the situation in one sentence: Yn syml, nid oes digon o...
Siân Gwenllian: 2. Will the First Minister make a statement on plans for a medical school for north Wales? OAQ(5)0562(FM)[W]
Siân Gwenllian: Well, clearly, there are also other reasons that would account for that as well, but certainly the introduction of proportional representation would improve that. We have seen the situation in local authorities in Scotland where, certainly, the turnout has been far higher in those elections. I believe that we need a new electoral system in order to raise people’s confidence in politics,...
Siân Gwenllian: Thank you, Llywydd. I move amendments 1 and 2 in the name of Rhun ap Iorwerth. I’d like to thank the Conservatives for tabling a motion that does recognise the importance of local authorities and, in that regard, how local democracy contributes towards public services that are of a high quality. Just a few words on some elements of the original motion—point 3 refers to acknowledging the...
Siân Gwenllian: I’m going to focus on the role of women in the workforce in the construction sector. The words ‘women’ and ‘construction’ don’t go together traditionally, and it’s time for that to change. At present, there are far fewer women than men in this sector. Encouraging more women to join the construction workforce could overcome some of the problems in the sector for the future, as...
Siân Gwenllian: It’s important that the Assembly continues with the good work of tackling waste. It’s an issue that affects us all. The seas, coastlines and beaches of Wales are habitats that are seriously damaged by waste and, in supporting Simon Thomas today, I want to mention the impact of waste on marine habitats and the impact of polystyrene particularly. Following the plastic bag tax, introduced...
Siân Gwenllian: Plaid Cymru supports all efforts to increase the social housing stock too and, of course, Carmarthenshire has been a council that’s been in the vanguard in this area. One restriction that could impact on the ability to build more social housing is the decision of the Office for National Statistics to re-allocate housing associations as public bodies, thereby restricting the availability of...
