Ken Skates: Can I thank the Member for her question? I wish her, and, indeed, all Members, a very happy new year. And I can confirm that we are moving forward with our ambitious vision to reshape public transport infrastructure and services across Wales, including local bus services, rail services through the next Wales and borders contract, active travel and the south Wales metro project, which will act...
Ken Skates: Bus services are a core component of a modern integrated public transport network. We are working with the industry and others to deliver long-term sustainability through investment, by developing integrated networks such as metro in north and south Wales and working with local partners to deliver infrastructure improvements to smooth traffic flow.
Ken Skates: The economy vision will emerge from the regional agenda contained in Welsh Government’s 'Prosperity for All: economic action plan' document, integrating the articulated aspirations of the north Wales growth bid and incorporating and capitalising on emerging opportunities associated with the activities of the Mersey Dee Alliance and Northern Powerhouse.
Ken Skates: Our economic action plan recognises the link between productivity and pay, and sets out the actions we are taking to support improved productivity and earnings in Wales.
Ken Skates: Advice on potential media investment budget projects continues to be provided by an independent media investment panel.
Ken Skates: As set out in the economic action plan, we are delivering a range of actions in partnership to support a stronger, fairer economy and help businesses to develop, grow and prosper. This includes business support, advice and investment in strategic infrastructure.
Ken Skates: As detailed in the national transport finance plan 2017 update, our resources are directed to achieving a sustainable and integrated transport system and supports all modes.
Ken Skates: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. I'd like to thank Mike Hedges for calling this debate, and it's my pleasure to respond to him. I'm incredibly pleased to see that the Construction Skills Network, in their latest forecast, predict that Wales will see unprecedented growth in construction over the next five years, and these forecasts are a reflection, I believe, of our continued commitment...
Ken Skates: Yes, indeed.
Ken Skates: I should say that Transport for Wales is being designed as an expert group to be able to offer advice and to manage rail services. I think it will require more than just Transport for Wales to deliver the maximum value for land and land-use planning that the Member and others have outlined. I don't see this being a role just for Transport for Wales, but for an entire raft of partners working...
Ken Skates: Yes. Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. I would like to thank all Members for their contributions today and for bringing forward this particular debate. As many Members have already said, improving our public transport system is absolutely critical to the economic, social and environmental ambitions of our country. I want to begin by saying that there is a huge amount in what Lee Waters...
Ken Skates: I do take the point from the Member that relying on a traditional predict-and-provide model does not always deliver the desired outcomes that we would wish to see in our communities. However, in all probability, as I said earlier to Jenny Rathbone, the development and the roll-out of autonomous vehicles and the reduced ownership but increased usage of vehicles could well lead to increased...
Ken Skates: Can I thank the Member for his comments generally about how we need to change attitudes and behaviours about how people move around Wales? I think, in terms of changing attitudes about how we move around Wales, we need to ensure that the quality of rail services improves so that people's attitudes towards rail services shift. We also need to ensure that people's attitudes to active travel...
Ken Skates: Can I thank Dawn Bowden for her questions and also say that I've probably learned more about Merthyr in the space of the last 18 or so months from the Member than I have from any books or history lessons? And, again, today, Dawn Bowden gave a fascinating insight into the history of the area that she represents, and I think she was absolutely right to say that transport plays a crucial role in...
Ken Skates: Can I thank the Member for his questions? The point that the Member made concerning the availability of affordable public transport is, perhaps, the most important point made. I'm reminded of a pretty terrifying statistic from the Mersey-Dee area, where 20 per cent of young, unemployed people are unable to get to job interviews because they cannot afford public transport, or cannot access...
Ken Skates: I'd agree with the Member's assertion that we need to ensure that the investment in the metros in the south, the north and potentially in the Swansea bay and western valleys leads to more homes, more services and more businesses being located around hubs and around station developments. It's absolutely essential that we take this once-in-a-generation opportunity of infrastructure—huge...
Ken Skates: Few Members in this Chamber describe hearing my statements as a great pleasure, but I'm pleased that that is the way they are received by Adam Price. I would say that I find it bizarre that he's suggesting that there should be less scrutiny of the work that I and my officials do. I think the update today provides a valuable opportunity to scrutinise an important document and important policy...
Ken Skates: Can I thank Russell George for his questions and the fact that he broadly welcomes the announcements that I've made today? The new strategy is being revisited, of course, during a period of immense technological change, change in terms of legislation, change in terms of powers, and change in terms of the way that people connect with one another across Wales and across the UK. But I can assure...
Ken Skates: New responsibilities in relation to the registration of local bus services, licensing of taxis and private hire vehicles, and the setting up of the traffic commissioner's office here in Wales, are new realities, together with additional responsibilities for the management of the Welsh rail service, which is expected to take place early in 2018. So, our transport strategy not only needs to...
Ken Skates: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. Transport has a pivotal role to play in improving Wales’s prosperity, connecting people, communities and businesses to jobs, facilities, services and markets. It has a key role in delivering cohesive communities and against our 'healthier' and 'more responsible' well-being goals through the choices people make and a modal shift to more sustainable travel...
