Llyr Gruffydd: Councillors have contacted me, and they're concerned that the councils are only given a month to prepare bids for the capital grant this year, which comes out of the underspend of the previous year, and that those bids have to be on the basis that there is an assurance that they will spend the funding in the current financial year. Now, we've been discussing a shortage of public funding, so...
Llyr Gruffydd: But the funding picture is a rather discombobulated one, isn't it, when you look at, for example, the way the Government funds education. Some money goes to consortia and some money goes to local authorities—some of that goes to local authorities through the RSG, some of it goes to local authorities through grants, some goes straight to schools and, of course, we have 22 local authorities...
Llyr Gruffydd: Diolch yn fawr. Does the Cabinet Secretary accept that school funding in Wales has reached crisis point?
Llyr Gruffydd: Well, I didn't expect you not to recognise as much, to be honest, but the front line is now saying quite clearly that there is a crisis and that we have reached that crisis point. It's leading to increased class sizes, which I know is something that you don't wish to see. It's led to an over-reliance on teaching assistants, who very often aren't properly paid. It's having a detrimental...
Llyr Gruffydd: 5. Will the Cabinet Secretary make a statement on capital expenditure on schools in the next financial year? OAQ52238
Llyr Gruffydd: Can I thank the Cabinet Secretary for your statement and also thank Professor Renold and the expert panel for their work, and all of those who contributed to the report and its recommendations? I disagree with Darren Millar. It isn't a decent report; I think it's an excellent report, and I think it's exactly the kind of report that Cabinet Secretaries should expect from these kinds of expert...
Llyr Gruffydd: Can I thank the Cabinet Secretary as well for her statement this afternoon, and reiterate the thanks to Ann Keane and others who brought us to this point and, of course, extend our best wishes to those who are now charged with moving this work forward over the coming period? As you say, leadership has been recognised as one of the weaker aspects of the Welsh education system for several...
Llyr Gruffydd: Many of us will have been shocked by the statistics published last week that over 77,000 work days had been lost in the Betsi Cadwaladr health board because of stress and anxiety amongst staff. Now, not only has that cost almost £5.5 million to the board, but it represents an increase of 17 per cent in absences in just six years. This board, as I mentioned earlier, is under the direct...
Llyr Gruffydd: 'It's a disgraceful way for a responsible employer to conduct itself in such a process.'
Llyr Gruffydd: —say the workers.
Llyr Gruffydd: 'The staff feel that, throughout this process, the communication has been poor and not undertaken in a timely manner, effectively preventing union representation and causing serious distress and worry to all staff concerned. The staff therefore request that you investigate and remedy deficiencies in the processes that have been highlighted to you.' Now, Betsi Cadwaladr, of course, is under...
Llyr Gruffydd: I've raised concerns on the privatisation of dialysis services with you previously, and that, of course, includes the possibility of staff moving from the national health service to the private sector to work, something that they have been entirely clear in their opposition to. Now, major questions have been raised by these staff on the process that has been undertaken in the Betsi Cadwaladr...
Llyr Gruffydd: 9. How will the First Minister ensure that workers have a strong voice in any discussions relating to public service reorganisation? OAQ52253
Llyr Gruffydd: 'Not only is this Bill likely to disadvantage children of non-working household disproportionately, it is also unlikely to achieve its main aim.'
Llyr Gruffydd: She also says:
Llyr Gruffydd: 'I am therefore unconvinced that this investment is evidence-based or well-targeted…I do not believe that the policy behind this Bill shows that the scheme will be suitable for the long-term.' Now, those are the children's commissioner's views. Do you know, by the way, that couples who earn up to £199,000 a year will be eligible for the free childcare offer? Now, the Government tells us...
Llyr Gruffydd: Well, if you've written and spoken about it for seven years, you don't need to tell me; you should tell your own Government. I'll come on to Flying Start in a minute, because you do make a valid point, but I'll address that in a moment.
Llyr Gruffydd: Therefore, I’ve outlined why I believe it’s important that we commit to provide free childcare for all children at three and four years old, as a means of tackling this inequality that I have referred to. This debate is timely because just this morning we started to scrutinise the childcare funding Bill that this Government has brought forward, and that policy, brought forward by...
Llyr Gruffydd: Thank you very much, Deputy Presiding Officer. I want to focus my comments on the need to ensure equal access for children to early-years education. I will start by sharing a statistic with you: over half of children from disadvantaged areas in Wales will start school with deficient communication skills. Indeed, children from the poorest 20 per cent of the population, by the time they are...
Llyr Gruffydd: I support this motion to agree the Assembly's dignity and respect policy. It is an important contribution to providing greater clarity on a number of aspects of important issues, that is what the expectations of the National Assembly for Wales are of anyone who is involved with the institution, what constitutes inappropriate behaviour, what you should do if you want to make a complaint about...
