Alun Davies: I do not place either a copy of the Green Paper or a map of the new authorities under my pillow. I do not do that. I do not dream, I do not wake with a start at three o'clock in the morning dreaming of new authorities in the Vale of Glamorgan or in the Vale of Clwyd or elsewhere, or the return of the flag of Dyfed and the kings of Deheubarth. I don't dream or think of things like that, and I...
Alun Davies: I will allow you to intervene. And that was coming from the WLGA, and not from Welsh Government.
Alun Davies: Well, the WLGA didn't go as far as that, I'm afraid to say, but I will say to my very good friend from Swansea East, who has made a speech that isn't entirely unfamiliar to me, that, as a country, we are not the greatest population on the planet. The population of Wales is slightly more than Paris or Rome, but below that of Berlin and Madrid. We need the structures that reflect properly the...
Alun Davies: For the second time in a few months I'm left speechless, Deputy Presiding Officer. I seem to have left my floral tributes in another place, and I'm left only with my wit and wisdom. So, this could be a very short contribution. [Laughter.] But I will answer the point because I thought it was a very interesting and thoughtful speech that we've just heard from Suzy Davies, who did challenge me,...
Alun Davies: I'm interested in this answer. [Laughter.]
Alun Davies: Formally.
Alun Davies: All apprenticeships can be studied through the medium of Welsh if there is demand. The apprenticeship budget is available for learners to study in the language of their choice and providers are contractually required to deliver the learning according to the choice of the learner.
Alun Davies: We have a plethora of flexible post-16 vocational opportunities available at all levels to suit our learners in Wales. We continue to modernise and invest to ensure choices post 16 are the best they can be.
Alun Davies: You're boring me.
Alun Davies: The Member for Aberavon, Presiding Officer, contributed to an excellent debate we had here earlier this month on the whole issue of justice policy in Wales. The points he makes are points that he knows I agree with. I agree very much that the overall constitutional settlement we have in this regard is broken. It's fractured, and what it means is that neither the Welsh Government nor the UK...
Alun Davies: Ensuring that Welsh prisoners have the appropriate level of support upon release is a key priority. As such, I meet with UK Ministers and the head of the prisons service in Wales to ensure that the services provided are appropriate for Welsh prisoners upon release and are supportive to reducing reoffending.
Alun Davies: Absolutely. I'm very happy to give the Member for Caerphilly that undertaking this afternoon. But also, I want all of our communities in the Valleys to be a part of designing what that landscape park or that regional park will look like. We will be hosting a number of seminars in the spring, through the spring, in order to look at how we can develop the concept, and make that concept a...
Alun Davies: The plan recognises the value of social enterprises as delivery partners. They support taskforce priorities through creating jobs, developing skills and providing local services across the Valleys. The plan includes actions to provide support to social enterprises through guidance and training, and initiatives such as Better Jobs Closer to Home.
Alun Davies: It began yesterday. I'm grateful to the Member for a part of Monmouthshire for placing on the internet for everybody to see our exchange and our conversation yesterday. I felt that the points that he made yesterday were very fair and were important to make, and I hope that he recognises that my response was made in a similar sort of vein. Let me say this about the WLGA. I saw their response...
Alun Davies: Our proposals were set out in the statement I made yesterday and the Green Paper that has been published for consultation.
Alun Davies: I've outlined the financial framework within which we are working at the moment. Those matters are quite rightly matters for my colleague the Minister for social services, and I'm sure that those are areas that he would want to address. But I do agree with you, and I think that it's right and proper that you do address issues around isolation and loneliness. You will be aware that in 'Taking...
Alun Davies: We have invested an additional £65 million in social services in this financial year. The 2018-19 settlement for local government prioritises £42 million and a further £31 million in the following year to maintain core spending on social care at current levels.
Alun Davies: I have discussed this with Pembrokeshire council, but they have a local mandate, of course, and it’s a mandate that they have to carry out. They are currently considering the implications and the legacy of the decisions that were made in the past and looking at how they will develop a financial strategy that will ensure the future of local services and also having a reasonable level of...
Alun Davies: The variance, of course, is caused by decisions taken by Pembrokeshire County Council, and I strongly support Pembrokeshire's right to take those decisions. Pembrokeshire County Council then deal with the consequences of the decisions that they themselves take. I think it's important that we do have a vigorous debate locally about local taxation. I believe that it's important that local...
Alun Davies: For 2018-19, Pembrokeshire County Council will receive £162 million from Welsh Government through the local government settlement.
