Rhun ap Iorwerth: Will the Leader of the House make a statement on the importance of access to 3G/4G services in rural areas?
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Firstly, any evidence that people are finding it easier now to get drugs that they are entitled to is to be welcomed, but a word of background: you may recall that, in 2014, Plaid Cymru announced a policy of seeking a new treatment fund that was specifically designed to fund the drugs obtained through individual patient funding requests. I'm very pleased that we are a step forward now, as a...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: I’m looking at a map of the electric car charging points across Britain. We see, across north Wales, how poor the provision is in terms of swift charging. I look forward to the revolution in the use of electric vehicles, but that isn’t going to be able to happen unless the Government truly shows ambition and puts a strategy in place in order to ensure that we are preparing the...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Welsh Government has rejected five of the committee recommendations. That's nearly a third. I'm disappointed at that as a committee member. I don't think it's particularly acceptable, in that none of those five, I don't think, are particularly controversial. I don't consider them to have massive financial implications, but, of course, I look forward to hearing the Cabinet Secretary's...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Certainly, I learnt a great deal during this inquiry. I have experience in my constituency as an Assembly Member for Ynys Môn of seeing a cluster at work—a very effective cluster as I understand it. I've sat in on cluster meetings and have seen the multidisciplinary work coming together in a way that I believe was very effective on behalf of my constituents in Ynys Môn. But I've also...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Just very briefly—and thank you for taking the intervention—wouldn't removing the barrier of legality help ease the way towards seeking methods of using cannabis in a medicinal way?
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Will you take an intervention?
Rhun ap Iorwerth: The evidence is clear, I think, or certainly I have been convinced. In 2016, as we heard, the results of seven months of research by a cross-party group in Westminster were published. That inquiry, in turn, was based on a world-wide review of evidence, and the very clear recommendation was that cannabis should be legalised for medical use. It is important, of course, that we draw up...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: I welcome that intervention, but I would point out that what we would be talking about here is possibly regulated raw cannabis, which would be much safer, of course, and would be prescribable. That is the whole point of what we're talking about. I will also address a point that was made in an intervention and also from the UKIP Member for South Wales West, who talked about smoking cannabis....
Rhun ap Iorwerth: 'Cannabis, whether used for medicinal or recreational purposes, is a dangerous substance and would have catastrophic consequences to health and society if it was ever legalised.' You cannot, though, just slip out the phrase 'whether for medicinal or recreational purposes' as if the two are one and the same, because they're not, and that is the appeal I make today and, of course, I'll welcome...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: I'm very pleased to be supporting this debate today. To me, it's a simple matter—a very, very simple matter. When people are suffering an illness that has symptoms that most of us don't have an idea of their seriousness, nor how they bring everyday life to a stop; where living with the condition is a real pain that paralyses someone, or makes them feel that life is not worth living; where...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Will you take an intervention?
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Thank you for taking the intervention. Just very briefly, much along the lines of a libertarian argument on public surveillance—if you've nothing to hide, you've nothing to fear—is it not the case also that, if there's nothing to fear from the undermining of the integrity of devolution from what the UK Government are seeking to do, why not just have a belt-and-braces approach...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: I'm very willing to help the Minister to fill a day of visits in north Wales by asking her to visit Anglesey as well. We had floods in many parts of Anglesey before Christmas, and, of course, I have visited those communities from Dwyran to Lanfairpwll to Menai Bridge and Llangefni, and so forth. I would like to mention the situation in Llangefni specifically. I, of course, have been...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: I'd also like to place on record my thanks to Ruth Hussey and her team for the way they conducted this review. And I think it has been a very timely look at the state of health and social care in Wales. I would say that, in that Plaid Cymru pushed the agenda on having this parliamentary review, and we've been only too pleased to play our part in being part of a discussion panel, every now and...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: A constituent from Talwrn contacted me recently, not that he was angry because he didn't have any superfast broadband, but that he's now found out that it has been available for some months and he wasn't aware of it. As it happens, I'm in the same situation, where a neighbour told me that we could access superfast broadband and have been able to do so for a few months. This is very...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: I drew to the attention of the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Services the problem of ambulance taxis being cancelled at the very last moment—something that causes distress to patients who have been waiting a while to go to hospital. In a response I received on 8 January, the Cabinet Secretary said that he was disappointed to hear of these concerns, that a transformation programme...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: 4. Will the First Minister make a statement on communicating with people who are waiting for superfast broadband services? OAQ51582
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Certainly, I am very aware of the concern in the sector now about how that protected money can be used by them. Now it’s up to Government to show that it is listening to that sector in giving them the flexibility to spend the money as they wish. I will conclude. Enough really is enough. Let’s not let the human tragedy of rough-sleeping happen simply because different layers of government...
Rhun ap Iorwerth: Certainly.
