<p>Refugee Children</p>

Part of 2. 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 2:21 pm on 24 May 2016.

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Photo of Joyce Watson Joyce Watson Labour 2:21, 24 May 2016

Thank you. We’ve all watched the crisis unfold, with a dramatic rise in the number of children on the move in Europe. According to Save the Children, they now make up one in three of those numbers this year, compared to one in 10 last year. It’s fairly obvious that, for those children, the risks of staying at home are greater than facing the dangers of being on the move. Some of those dangers are a risk of violence to them, trafficking, or even drowning on their journey within or without Europe. It’s good to see that the UK Government has finally backed down on its refusal to accept child refugees into Britain, but that promise is somewhat vague in terms of its delivery. So, could I ask you, First Minister, if the Welsh Government is in communication with the Home Office about how many children might be offered accommodation or safe sanctuary here in Wales, and what funding would be available, or made available, to both the Welsh Assembly and also Welsh councils to offer those places to those children?