Mike Hedges: Thanks to Tom Giffard for giving me a minute in this debate. Successful regions and countries in the world use their universities as economic drivers—Cambridge, Bristol and Warwickshire, amongst others in England, and California, Denmark and Germany, which are economically successful, benefit from their universities, such as Stanford, Heidelberg and Aarhus. We have outstanding universities...
Mike Hedges: I very much welcome the statement. I agree with the Minister that the development bank here in Wales means we can maintain capability and stability to drive economic development. I, like Paul Davies, am pleased that the development bank is taking a proactive role in facilitating help for businesses. I have three questions. How is it intended to help businesses move from small to medium-sized...
Mike Hedges: Many children are living in poverty not caused by parental indolence or wastefulness; many parents are working two or three jobs, but at minimum wage, on irregular hours. The expansion of free school meals to a universal provision of meals is very welcome. What further help can the Welsh Government give to support foodbanks, and will the Welsh Government make representation to end the fixed...
Mike Hedges: As I said to Janet Finch-Saunders earlier, why can't we charge the online sellers in their big warehouses as if they were on the high street?
Mike Hedges: Will you take an intervention?
Mike Hedges: Perhaps one way forward would be to charge online retailers as if they were on the high street.
Mike Hedges: This investigation by the Public Accounts and Public Administration Committee is, in my opinion, timely. Care homes play a major role in the provision of care to mainly older people, but not exclusively older people. It involves a large number of providers. Some are providers with more than one site, others have only one home, and there are some major providers, but each one of them is...
Mike Hedges: Of course, if the Government came forward with legislation, you and the Conservatives would vote against it, and it would go down. I think that this is a means by which to achieve, meaning that it will happen. If you and the Conservatives could start voting for Government legislation, it might be easier to do it.
Mike Hedges: I also believe that the views of local people are important. I more importantly believe that it is important to protect our national parks, areas of outstanding natural beauty and green belt—we all benefit from them. Does the Minister agree with me that it is important to protect these areas for future generations, as opposed to the Conservative leader in the Senedd, who said that...
Mike Hedges: Can I thank the First Minister for that response? We have an excellent screening programme in Wales. I welcome the reduction in the age for screening for bowel cancer. I believe in the importance of screening, but it is unfortunate that people cannot get time off work to attend screening. Will the First Minister support all directly and indirectly employed Welsh Government staff being allowed...
Mike Hedges: 5. Will the First Minister provide an update on NHS population-based national screening programmes across Wales? OQ58554
Mike Hedges: Can I thank Luke Fletcher for giving me a minute in this debate? EMA is very important. From my time as a further education college lecturer in RCT, if EMA had not existed many students who went on to successful careers in ICT would not have been able to continue their studies. EMA provides the finance to allow them to continue studying and then move on to higher education. EMA allows those...
Mike Hedges: I think you've just made a number of builders very happy, knowing you would welcome large-scale building in Cowbridge and the Vale of Glamorgan. The UK Government's freeze on local housing allowances means that most people and families receiving local housing allowance rates face a gap between rates paid and their rent. This increases the risk of homelessness, as it becomes more and more...
Mike Hedges: Please.
Mike Hedges: I thank Plaid Cymru for bringing this debate forward today. I think we need to talk about housing much more often than we do. I believe housing is important, and until we deal with housing effectively to create a balance between supply and demand, there will continue to be a problem. A lot of the problems we have in education and health stem from inadequate housing. There are two answers to...
Mike Hedges: Can I thank you for that answer, Minister? I visited all the secondary schools in Swansea East on GCSE results day, and I visited those that had A-level results on A-level results day. They were happy with the results, but, as the Minister knows, there were problems with some of the questions set. He knows this because I've raised it with him on several occasions. What discussions has the...
Mike Hedges: 7. What assessment has the Minister made of the summer 2022 GCSE and A-level results? OQ58512
Mike Hedges: I very much welcome the Minister's statement. I welcome measures to make it easier for disabled voters, both those with physical and sensory disabilities, to be able to get to a polling station. Sometimes, getting into the polling station itself can be very difficult for people who do have those disabilities. And what do people do? They don't bother, because it's too much trouble. I welcome...
Mike Hedges: I would like to ask for two statements from the Government. The first one is on enterprise zones. There were eight enterprise zones created in Wales. The Finance Committee undertook an inquiry in 2013; there was a written update in March this year. I'm asking for an update on the planned future funding of enterprise zones. The second statement I'm asking for is on orthopaedic waiting lists....
Mike Hedges: What action is the Welsh Government taking to support those who use British sign language as their main means of communication?
