Darren Millar: Will you take an intervention?
Darren Millar: Thank you. I'm very grateful for your opening remarks, saying that you agree in principle with the need to extend and develop older people's rights and the awareness of them both in the public and the private sectors. But can you tell me why the Welsh Government is so inconsistent when it comes to rights? Why is it that children and young people have a specific piece of legislation on the...
Darren Millar: Can I thank the Cabinet Secretary for her statement, and for foresight of it before it was made this afternoon? Can I also put on record my thanks to the chair of the expert panel for the work that she and her fellow panel members have done? Emma Renold, I think, has produced a very decent report that considers thoroughly many of the issues that relationships and sex education present. You'll...
Darren Millar: Thank you, Minister, for your statement, and for an advance copy of it. It is all about leadership, in terms of making sure that all of our children have the very best opportunities to thrive during their time in school and the education system here in Wales. I know that this is something that you are passionate about addressing, in terms of the deficiencies in the system. And I too want to...
Darren Millar: Thank you for that answer, First Minister. I'm a huge advocate of the programme, and I think it's been doing some excellent work. Just last week, I returned from western Kenya, where I saw the work that's being done by Just Earth, which is a Welsh-based charity helping subsistence farmers in that part of the country; it's also doing some work in Uganda too. As a result, they're increasing...
Darren Millar: 6. Will the First Minister make a statement on the future of the Wales for Africa programme? OAQ52215
Darren Millar: Will the Cabinet Secretary make a statement on road safety in Clwyd West?
Darren Millar: Will you take an intervention?
Darren Millar: I'll keep my remarks brief, Deputy Presiding Officer, because many people have made the points that I wanted to make. But I would just say to the Cabinet Secretary: this is another fine mess you have gotten yourself into. We had hoped, I think, many of us in this Chamber, that you would have learned your lesson in terms of the lack of consultation over the way in which you scrapped the MEAG...
Darren Millar: I share the concerns that have been expressed by Mick Antoniw and agree with him wholeheartedly that we need to take more action in our schools to address problem gambling. One of the concerns that has been raised with me is that, in the Welsh baccalaureate, there is a task that has been assigned to some pupils in Wales that asks them to imagine what it's like to win the lottery and then to...
Darren Millar: They are very warm words, and I'm sure that the spirit of the code is something that responsible local authorities will, of course, adopt, but the reality is that we have local authorities in Wales—Ynys Môn, Denbighshire and others—that are progressing with school closures in rural communities, and by and large Welsh-medium schools, as a result of the code not being sufficient at...
Darren Millar: Diolch, Llywydd. Cabinet Secretary, will you tell us when you'll be in a position to publish the new school organisation code?
Darren Millar: I'm very pleased to hear that, Cabinet Secretary, because, as you will know, I share your aspiration to make sure that the code is balanced and that it doesn't disfavour or do a disservice to rural schools in particular, many of which, of course, as you will appreciate, are small, Welsh-medium schools. Given that concerns have been raised by Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg and many others about...
Darren Millar: Will the Cabinet Secretary make a statement on how many schools have closed since her appointment?
Darren Millar: Can I call for three statements, please—the first on road safety in Conwy and Denbighshire? The leader of the house will be aware that there has been an announcement of a task and finish group for an extremely dangerous stretch of road, known as the Evo triangle, which crosses the border between Conwy and Denbighshire in my constituency. It's a 20-mile stretch that is promoted by online...
Darren Millar: Thank you very much, Deputy Presiding Officer. I know I've got very limited time, so I just want to refer, if I can, to the Cabinet Secretary's comments. I heard what you had to say, and I acknowledge that some work is going on in the Welsh Government to try to address this problem. I'm pleased that you at least acknowledge that we have a problem, even if you don't acknowledge that it's a...
Darren Millar: Diolch, Llywydd. Can I move the motion in the name of Paul Davies on the order paper today in respect of the growing teacher recruitment crisis that we have here in Wales? If the Welsh Government's ambition for all learners to reach their full potential is ever to be realised, then we've got to have an education workforce that is fit for the future and equipped to deliver that aim. But we...
Darren Millar: I think that you should've announced this in the Chamber, not to your party members, and I, frankly, am appalled, because this is the sort of behaviour that you would have been the first to shout up and criticise when you were on the opposition benches before you joined this shambolic Government, so I'm very disappointed that you have made the announcement in this way, and I think it shows...
Darren Millar: Diolch, Cadeirydd. Look, while I welcome any additional funding that you might announce on behalf of the Welsh Government for learners in our schools, and particularly those who may face disadvantage, I have to say, I'm extremely disappointed by the timing of this announcement; I think it's a huge discourtesy to the National Assembly, to the Children, Young People and Education Committee and...
Darren Millar: Now, notwithstanding that, of course, there are some concerns that the eligibility criteria for access to free childcare is restrictive in a way that means that there's not a universal offer that's being made. The children's commissioner and others have voiced their concerns that those young people who are from poorer backgrounds tend to be around 10 months behind their peers in terms of...
