Janet Finch-Saunders: Yes, but I’m here in the Senedd, and I’m on about what the Welsh Labour Government and Plaid Cymru—how you have failed in this. In 2015, the chief executive of Gwynedd county council was paid £306,000, and my colleague Neil McEvoy there raised the differential between local chief executives and the Prime Minister. Yet £306,000 was paid here and, to the director of environment at...
Janet Finch-Saunders: Thank you, deputy—. [Assembly Members: ‘Chair.’] Chair. [Laughter.] I would like to move the amendments tabled in the name of Paul Davies AM. Those amendments state quite clearly, ‘Delete point 2, and replace with: ‘Recognises Welsh Conservative proposals, which called on the Welsh Government to place a binding limit on senior office holder salaries to ensure that local authorities...
Janet Finch-Saunders: [Continues.]—far higher than their rents. Llywydd, we welcome a review of business rates, however it’s too little, too late. We call for an immediate cap on the multiplier and take a proactive approach to radically reform our really outdated business rates system in Wales.
Janet Finch-Saunders: I don’t think I need to tell anyone here that small businesses are indeed the lifeblood of our economy in Wales, making up 99.4 per cent of all businesses in Wales. In 2015-16, the number of SME start-ups rose by 2.1 per cent—that’s 99,860—all small businesses, all out there on their own. Many are sole traders who start off small and they have many competing and conflicting priorities...
Janet Finch-Saunders: Thank you. You might have seen the BBC One programme last night, ‘Keeping a Lid On It’. It was highlighting problems of four-weekly bin collections in Conwy. But one of the issues that came from that is that about 70 per cent of beach litter in Wales is polystyrene/plastic, and everyone is now with these polystyrene cups for coffee and everything. They’re finding their way now...
Janet Finch-Saunders: I thank the Member for asking the question, actually. Japanese knotweed is estimated to cost £165 million to the UK economy each year, and the Residential Landlord Association has warned that it can have such a detrimental effect on the value of property it can render it worthless. The previous Minister did say that a natural predator had been found that will help in the control of Japanese...
Janet Finch-Saunders: Thank you. And, finally, turning to community councils, as part of your local government reform, how do you intend to proceed with a fundamental review of the democratic level of governance that sits at town and community level?
Janet Finch-Saunders: Thank you, Cabinet Secretary. The future generations commissioner has warned that public services could fall off a cliff without more being done to prevent people from becoming ill. This includes, obviously, quality housing and leisure services. Further, the Welsh Local Government Association has expressed concerns that NHS budgetary pressures could see non-healthcare services that help...
Janet Finch-Saunders: Cabinet Secretary, the recent Health Foundation report, ‘The path to sustainability: Funding projections for the NHS in Wales to 2019/20 and 2030/31’, highlights the need for an increase of around 60 per cent in funding to £10.4 billion by 2030-31 in order to meet the forthcoming predicted demand. They also identify the need for greater efficiency, and we know that smarter ways of...
Janet Finch-Saunders: 9. Will the Minister make a statement on the use of polystyrene food packaging in Wales? OAQ(5)0067(ERA)
Janet Finch-Saunders: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. And I move the motion tabled by Paul Davies AM, which seeks to recognise the immense value our older members in our communities contribute to our economy, but also to recognise the needs that they deserve now to, hopefully, assist them to have a long and quality life. People are living longer—into their 80s, 90s, and even longer. They’ve gone further,...
Janet Finch-Saunders: Will the First Minister make a statement on the implementation of Rent Smart Wales?
Janet Finch-Saunders: This debate is very timely, especially given some of the difficulties now presenting on broadband matters across Wales, and not least of all within Aberconwy. Rather than cultivating connectivity, the Welsh Government now has on their hands a major digital divide, with many caught up in a postcode lottery to access and download speed. Just 60 per cent of properties in rural Wales have access...
Janet Finch-Saunders: Okay. And to be truly accountable for the delivery of these services. Cabinet Secretary, I applaud you for the work that you’ve done on the social services, to the budget there, and to the car parking in town centres, because that was really affecting my constituency. [Interruption.] I thank you for my contribution.
Janet Finch-Saunders: Thank you. I move amendment 1 in the name of Paul Davies, and thank Sian Gwenllian for the opening address on the local government debate—a debate that’s very close to our hearts here on the Welsh Conservative benches, because it’s clear from the proposals with regard to regional combined authorities, of course, put forward by Plaid Cymru’s manifesto, and in the Cabinet Secretary’s...
Janet Finch-Saunders: First Minister, one way of protecting our community arts centres, of course, is a similar model to that in England of the Localism Act 2011 in order to save community facilities. Seventy-eight per cent of respondents to your ‘Protecting Community Assets’ were in favour of such rights. Over the past 18 months, you've funded a community transfer support officer at a cost of £56,000 to the...
Janet Finch-Saunders: I am indeed really grateful to Lee Waters AM for instigating this debate, to put on record, actually, some acknowledgement of the work you’ve done previously over many years in fighting through, you know, with enthusiasm and passion to implement a real focus for the main aims and purpose of the active travel Act. You know, it’s been said here, hasn’t it, that the health and well-being...
Janet Finch-Saunders: Thank you. Action on Hearing Loss have found that 84 per cent of the 575,000 people in Wales who are deaf or having hearing loss difficulties feel that this obviously makes it harder for them to access vital services. Conwy County Borough Council, of course, has the highest proportion in Wales, at 23 per cent, with 27,000 people who require such appropriate support. You may be aware that in...
Janet Finch-Saunders: 5. Will the Minister make a statement on ensuring that people who are deaf or hard of hearing are not discriminated against? OAQ(5)0054(CC)
Janet Finch-Saunders: First Minister, the draft charter provides an opportunity for further scrutiny of the BBC, to include the appointment of a non-executive director to be agreed by the UK and Welsh Governments. Amid concerns that the National Assembly for Wales will not be afforded, however, the same weighting as the House of Commons and the House of Lords, what representations are you making on behalf of this...
