Jenny Rathbone: The WASPI demonstration and lobby of Parliament today will no doubt have been drowned out by other events going on. But I think it’s very important to recognise that the Work and Pensions Committee in the House of Commons came up with a solution to this problem, to allow women to claim their pension early at a reduced rate. What is there that you can do to persuade the UK Government,...
Jenny Rathbone: One of the reasons that so many of us face the withdrawal from the European Union with such trepidation is that we’ve had so much war in Europe. It is the centenary of the Somme, where a million people died, and nobody can any longer remember what the benefit was. So, obviously, I support our armed forces keeping us safe and defending our freedom, but we have to do all we can to ensure that...
Jenny Rathbone: We’ve just had the beginning of a very important discourse on the momentous and terrifying decision taken last Thursday. I wondered if it’s possible to fit in, before the summer recess, three further debates on specific areas that are posed by the Brexit decision. One is on the future of our fisheries, and how we might protect them in light of the fact that we only have one boat at the...
Jenny Rathbone: We have to recognise that Wales has yet to suffer from the extent of the cuts that have been experienced in England. In England, council budgets were cut by 10 per cent in cash terms in the last five years whereas in Wales overall they went up by 2.5 per cent. That is because schools and social services were ring-fenced, avoiding the cuts that occurred in other services, but obviously there...
Jenny Rathbone: It’s interesting to hear the argument from David Rowlands, which is an argument for staying in the EU, because of course if the M4 is considered a trans-European network, then there may be some way in which we could get some contribution from the Irish. But, anyway, putting that to one side, I welcome very much the rigour, the transparency and the caution with which the Cabinet Secretary is...
Jenny Rathbone: Well, our record is obviously excellent, and colleges like the Cardiff and Vale College that provide excellent further education for a range of subjects ensure that people have the skills they need to get work. What work are we doing to ensure that we are developing the skills that employers are going to need in the future so that we’re not having to rely on attracting people from other...
Jenny Rathbone: 6. Will the First Minister make a statement on the latest employment rate in Wales compared to the rest of the UK? OAQ(5)0067(FM)
Jenny Rathbone: First, I need to declare an interest as an investor in Awel, which is a social enterprise delivering onshore wind energy in the Amman valley. I just want to record that last month was the first month when we actually delivered more solar energy across the UK than coal energy, and therefore we are at a crossroads now. All the energy companies are beginning to wake up to that they need to...
Jenny Rathbone: Yes. Anyway, just to say that I think that we need to recognise whey we formed the European Union—to ward off the return of fascism and to represent the democratic future we all need to have. We need to lead on Europe, not leave it.
Jenny Rathbone: Campaigns do indeed reveal character, and people living in the past are the leavers, not the remainers. I’m in the strange position of today agreeing with George Osborne, who says that, if you are wealthy and don’t use public services, then you can afford to toy with the idea of harking back to a bygone era, when Britain ruled the waves, and the sun never set on the British empire....
Jenny Rathbone: Yesterday, Cabinet Secretary, you and I heard from people who have diabetes about the improvements that have taken place in services across Wales. That is to be commended and to be celebrated—the work that was done by your predecessor, Mark Drakeford, in implementing the diabetes plans. As a result, we are now the envy of diabetes champions in England, because of the fact that each health...
Jenny Rathbone: What plans does the Minister have for improving access to community pharmacists?
Jenny Rathbone: Will the Minister provide a detailed timeline of plans for the South Wales Metro?
Jenny Rathbone: What role can Welsh-generated renewable energy play in the Welsh Government's plans for developing the economy?
Jenny Rathbone: Thank you very much, and welcome, Minister. I’d just like to pay tribute to—you’ve said that an amount of food waste is still appearing in black recycling, which is obviously a major health issue, as well as loved by the gulls—the work that Love Food Hate Waste is doing to divert food from having to go to land waste into being used productively by organisations. I think it’s really...
Jenny Rathbone: I agree with you that we should be concentrating on focusing on the success of our own team. You’ve already mentioned that both in Swansea and Cardiff there will be a fanzone, and I am very pleased to congratulate Cardiff council on getting the sponsorship together so that there can be a fanzone in Bute park for the three events. I just wanted to raise with you the importance of making it a...
Jenny Rathbone: It’s good to hear, First Minister, that you recognise that this really is a global threat to human health and survival rates from common causes. We have always assumed that we would easily survive the common diseases that now could cause death. Professor O’Neill is calling for worldwide action on this, both in relation to the overuse of antibiotics in animals as well as the overuse of...
Jenny Rathbone: 7. What is the Welsh Government’s response to the O’Neill report on the threat to human health from the overuse of antibiotics? OAQ(5)0007(FM)
Jenny Rathbone: Carwyn Jones.
