Rhun ap Iorwerth: ...read about the incident are appalling. They characterise the lack of tolerance that has been part of the public discourse over the past few years. So, how can we ensure that the kind of citizenship education that is presented in Welsh schools does far more to teach people about Wales’s place in the world, its relationship with the rest of the world, and how people interact with each...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: 7. Will the Minister make a statement on teaching international citizenship in schools? OAQ54605
Rhun ap Iorwerth: 'If we focus only on material wellbeing—on, say, the production of goods, rather than on health, education, and the environment—we become distorted in the same way that these measures are distorted; we become more materialistic…If we want to put people first, we have to know what matters to them, what improves their wellbeing and how we can supply more of whatever that is.'
Rhun ap Iorwerth: ...the books this year was with an increase in council tax of almost 10 per cent, as with many other councils. But that can't be an option for the next year. There’s nowhere left to cut, other than education and social care, and with the significant improvement in children’s services and the increased pressure on adult services, we can't put those services for the most vulnerable in...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: ...Government budget, and we will hold the Labour Government to account on that budget. But we do believe that, through our agreement and the additional funds for the foundational economy, for nursery education, for mental health, for the young farmers grant, for end-of-life care, for investment in the arts and heritage and in sport and tourism, and so on and so forth, that we have been able...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Certainly, HEIs that are strong are very important economically, culturally and socially, in terms of contributing to our prosperity as a nation. I want to talk about the economic impact of higher education, mainly. It happens on a number of levels, and the problems and the crisis that we face in the sector at present should be ringing very loud alarm bells, in terms of the economic risks. On...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: ...than ever, and I think that the pressure from the Youth Parliament can ensure that research and support and mental health and well-being services will be a totally integral and core part of the education, health, career and social experience of young people the length and breadth of Wales. Of course, the focus on life skills in the curriculum is a very important area. Growing from being a...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Thank you very much. I, too, am a fan of the daily mile. The children at the school that my children attended, Ysgol Henblas in Llangristiolus, do that and it brought them a great deal of benefit. But in wanting to see 120 minutes being given to physical activity, I'm perfectly happy for that to include the daily mile. I don't mean formal physical education lessons necessarily. The important...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: ...report is very useful, but that the Government's response was very disappointing. We both have no doubt that one of the main things that needs to be done is to use the fact that we have children in school for a large proportion of their lives to drive a change in fitness levels. Personally, I would like to move towards something like an hour of physical activity every day for everyone,...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: ...whistleblowing process in Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board is broken. Now, we know that children who don't get the help they need with their communication can experience lifelong impacts—education, employment, mental health, well-being and so on. I've dealt with a number of cases where children have had prolonged waits for therapy, or have experienced unsuitable therapy—one case...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: ...? Certainly, there are impacts to tourism that need to be tackled, and one thing that we can do is try and move from the back foot to the front foot and to try and take the Welsh language, through education, more directly to tourists and those who are here on a more permanent basis, perhaps, as the owners of second homes. We in Plaid Cymru, by the way, see clear potential to develop...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: ...that, the Government stated that they were willing to make that statement. It was a very important symbolic statement, and I look forward to discussing that with environmental campaigners in my old school, Ysgol David Hughes, tomorrow. But, whilst the symbolism was significant, our willingness to take action will be the measure of our success in tackling that emergency. And, in the Chamber...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: You’re quite right, and I was going to come to that point, that this now has to be at the heart of what we offer to people in terms of opportunities—in education first of all, and then in business. What Wales needs to demonstrate, and why it’s so important that the Government does proceed to carry out specific research in this area, as the motion suggests, is that we are seeking a way...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: ...leaving the European Union on future R&D funding in Wales. R&D funding comes from many different sources, of course, and business is by far the biggest source of funding, but let me look at higher education. Recent figures show UK higher education R&D spend in total of around £6.5 billion. Break that down and we see spend per person in Wales to be £86. In London and the home counties of...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: .... We have stars that we’re very proud of in George North, who is playing for Wales at the moment, and Robin McBryde, who is a key part of the coaching team. I remember Stuart Roy from my own school winning his international cap, and Iwan Jones too. And I was excited to see Rhun Williams playing superbly as a fullback. As a child, I played for Menai Bridge and for Bangor. I reached the...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: ...imposed by the UK Government, as well as the failure, I'm afraid to say, of the Welsh Government to prioritise local government funding this year, has led to totally unsustainable pressures on education budgets in Anglesey, as in the rest of Wales. I congratulate Anglesey council on succeeding in safeguarding education budgets to a great extent, but, of course, they have had to increase...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: 8. Will the Minister make a statement on school budgets in Anglesey? OAQ53548
Rhun ap Iorwerth: ...given the current financial climate. A shortage of adequate funding is certain to have a direct impact from hereon in on areas that, to all intents and purposes, have been protected to this point—education and social services are two that are foremost in my thoughts. A failure to spend sufficiently on social services has an impact on health budgets, and by cutting the funding of crucial...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: ...a great number of things that we're extremely proud of: £40 million for mental health services, further funding for the development of medical training that has led to the establishment of medical education for north Wales, support for businesses during Brexit and post Brexit, the football museum and the contemporary art museum being developed further, and funding for Glan-llyn and...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Will the Minister make a statement on school budgets in light of the 2019-20 local government settlement?
