Peredur Owen Griffiths: Our final recommendation also relates to the regulatory powers in the Bill. We ask the Welsh Government to commit to providing a full and robust RIA to accompany any relevant subordinate legislation made under this Bill that bans further single-use plastic products not already covered within the scope of the legislation as drafted. Llywydd, we are grateful to the Minister and her officials...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: Turning to the committee's views, we support the aims of the Bill to accelerate the shift from single-use plastics towards developing more sustainable alternatives, and we acknowledge the environmental benefits of reducing plastic pollution. We are also pleased to hear that the Minister continues to engage with stakeholders to ensure that the aims of this legislation are effectively...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: Thank you, Llywydd, and I'm pleased to contribute to this debate today as Chair of the Finance Committee. I’d like to thank the Minister for attending committee to discuss the financial implications of the Bill. We've made five recommendations, and I thank the Minister for the comments that the Minister's made on those, and I look forward to getting more detail from her in due time. But...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: Trefnydd, in the past few weeks, major concerns have been expressed about the safety of an Ebbw Vale hotel that is acting as a house in multiple occupation. A man was found dead at the Park Hotel in Waunlwyd, and another was arrested on suspicion of his murder. Local residents who were part of a subsequent public meeting to discuss their fears about the safety of the hotel say it's the third...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: That's certainly a very good point there by Mark, and maybe the Minister can pick up that point when she comes to respond. As I said, I was in Vienna and over 60 per cent of those citizens live in social and affordable housing. But in Vienna, it was clear that the construction efforts were about more than just housing; they were about building communities—real communities, where people's...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: Yes, certainly.
Peredur Owen Griffiths: Thank you for the opportunity to participate in this important debate today.
Peredur Owen Griffiths: As the report indeed notes, second homes are not a new phenomenon. Plaid Cymru has been pushing for action to combat this issue for decades. The issue of second homes has become worse and worse for many of our communities across Wales, whether that's in our rural Welsh-speaking heartlands or indeed in our urban centres. The present housing crisis facing communities across Wales, driven in...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: Thank you for the answer, Minister.
Peredur Owen Griffiths: It's been five years since a decision was taken to close Communities First, the Government's anti-poverty programme. Following this decision, the Equality, Local Government and Communities Committee produced a report, which recommended, and I quote, 'a clear tackling poverty strategy is published, which brings together the many strands of poverty reduction work to help provide clear direction...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: 2. What is the Government doing to address poverty? OQ58491
Peredur Owen Griffiths: Thank you very much for the scheme and for these reports. Over the weekend, I had the pleasure of singing with my choir, CF1, with another choir, for a tv show with Rhys Meirion, Canu Gyda fy Arwr, which will be broadcast early next year. It's not unusual for us to join another choir, but what was unusual in this case was that the choirs were not only singing but also using Makaton, which is...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: Thank you for the answer.
Peredur Owen Griffiths: The rising cost of essential items is something that we're all too familiar with. The current rate of inflation, at about 9.9 per cent, is causing people in Wales dire financial problems. In agriculture, the rate of inflation is running at a staggering 23.5 per cent annually, but I think in certain places that that is even higher. This is causing many farmers to question their future in the...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: 4. What is the Government doing to promote food security? OQ58445
Peredur Owen Griffiths: Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd. Minister, could you maybe give us an indication of whether you agreed with Andy Burnham leaving the 20 per cent rate as it is, so that it leaves the money there, so that we can actually invest in our communities?
Peredur Owen Griffiths: Bearmach has been a good local employer for many years in the Bedwas and Trethomas area. Apart from the 50 jobs that have been quoted as being affected, there will also be, as we've heard, lots of other agency staff employed at the site, who have now lost their income at the worst possible time. This will also be a blow to local businesses who worked in tandem with Bearmach, or benefited from...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: Thank you for that response.
Peredur Owen Griffiths: This winter will be one of the most challenging in the history of devolution, because the cost-of-living crisis will have a brutal and merciless impact on almost everybody, but especially the most vulnerable, without significant state intervention. Education is one of the many places where this crisis will be felt. Some children not covered by our free school meals policy will be going hungry...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: 7. What is the Government doing to create the best learning environment for children? OQ58399
